GIFT  OF 
the  estate  of 

Professor  William  F.  Meyer 


A  MODERN 

COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC 

(COMPLETE  COURSE) 

CONTAINING   THE   PRINCIPLES  OF   CORRECT   ARTISTIC   AND 
EFFECTIVE    ENGLISH 

FOR    SCHOOLS 


BY 

LEWIS   WORTHINGTON    SMITH,  PH.  B. 

H 

PROFESSOR  OF  ENGLISH,  TABOR  COLLEGE,  IA. 


JAMES    E.   THOMAS,  A.B.   (HARV.) 

MASTER  OF  ENGLISH,  BOSTON  ENGLISH  HIGH  SCHOOL 


ov  TroAA*  dAAa  7roA.v 


BENJ.  H.  SANBORN  &  CO. 
BOSTON,  U.S.A. 


Copyright,  1900-1901. 
LEWIS  W.  SMITH  AND  JAMKS  E.  THOMAS, 


PREFACE. 


NEARLY  two  thousand  years  ago  Quintilian  defined 
rhetoric  as  "the  art  of  speaking  well."  Had  he  lived  in 
the  present  age,  he  would  undoubtedly  have  said,  "the 
art  of  speaking  ancTof  writing  well."  No  better  phrase 
can  be  found  to  describe  the  true  function  of  rhetoric 
to-day.  Previous  to  the  last  decade  it  was  regarded  as 
an  ornamental  study,  abounding  in  theory  and  subtle  dis- 
tinctions of  diction  and  style.  With  the  development  of 
the  study  of  English  in  the  schools  came  an  awakening 
to  the  true  value  of  rhetoric,  and  its  relation  to  the  study 
of  literature  and  composition.  To-day  rhetoric  and  com- 
position are  inseparably  associated  in  teaching  the 
methods  of  simple,  direct,  and  accurate  expression,  the 
principle  of  one  being  supplemented  by  the  abundant 
practice  of  the  other. 

In  the  making  of  the  present  text -book  the  authors 
have  been  influenced  by  two  important  considerations. 
First,  they  believe  firmly  in  the  inductive  method ;  and 
the  text  has  been  written  in  the  hope  of  encouraging  the 
pupil  to  make  his  own  researches  under  the  guidance  of 
the  teacher,  but  without  that  absolute  reliance  upon 


M5772S6 


IV  PREFACE. 

the  dictum  of  another,  so  subversive  of  independent 
literary  judgment.  Second,  in  an  art  so  delicate  as  that 
of  literary  expression,  it  is  of  great  importance  that  all  in- 
struction given,  whether  propounded  directly  in  the  way 
of  statement  of  rhetorical  theory,  or  left  for  the  student  to 
discover  through  the  medium  of  exercises,  should  be  made 
as  definite  as  is  possible  in  matters  involving  such  subtle- 
ties of  psychology  and  of  taste.  It  is  a  comparatively 
easy  matter  to  write  entertainingly  and  thoughtfully  on 
literary  subjects  without  leaving  in  the  mind  of  the 
reader  anything  tangible  or  clear-cut.  This  in  a  text- 
book is  always  a  fault,  and  failure  here  is  well-nigh 
failure  altogether.  The  teacher  should  be  advised,  how- 
ever, that  much  depends  upon  the  care  with  which  he 
drives  home  the  conclusions  which  the  pupil  is  sup- 
posed to  draw  from  the  exercises  and  illustrative  material 
placed  before  him.  Great  care  has  been  taken  in  this 
book  to  make  plain  to  the  pupil  just  the  sort  of  investi- 
gation he  is  to  make  in  each  case,  and  the  teacher 
should  see  to  it  that  from  every  exercise  the  pupil  gets 
a  definite  understanding  of  some  principle  of  literary 
art. 

The  definite  object  of  the  book  is  that  of  giving  train- 
ing in  accuracy  of  thought,  nicety  of  taste,  and  finer 
command  of  the  wizard  words  that  touch  imagination. 
These  things  cannot  be  acquired  by  rule,  they  must 
not  be  taught  by  rote.  Literary  judgment,  not  theoreti- 
cal knowledge  of  the  literary  laws  that  others  have 
established,  is  the  end  for  which  rhetoric  should  be 


PREFA  CE.  V 

studied  Some  statement  of  rhetorical  doctrine  is  ne- 
cessary, and  such  statement  has  been  made  as  simple  and 
clear  as  possible  ;  but  these  laws  the  student  is  given 
opportunity  to  verify  for  himself,  and  he  should  accept 
them  only  after  such  verification.  They  cannot  other- 
wise be  of  any  service  to  him  in  his  own  writing. 

No  text-book  of  rhetoric  can  lay  claim  to  entire 
originality,  but  each  should  have  some  original  features 
to  justify  its  existence.  The  principles  of  rhetoric 
are  old,  but  improved  educational  methods  and  experi- 
ence in  the  class-room  are  continually  suggesting  new 
methods  of  teaching  them.  Any  new  book  upon  the 
subject  must  keep  pace  with  modern  pedagogical  meth- 
ods, and  embody  the  latest  results  of  class-room  ex- 
perience. It  should  not  be  a  mere  imitation  of  books 
already  in  existence,  but  should  aim  to  make  a  distinct 
advance  in  helpful  and  practical  suggestions.  Original- 
ity must  consist  in  presenting  old  truths  in  a  new  light, 
conformably  to  new  ideas  and  new  methods.  This  im- 
plies a  wise  choice  of  material,  a  sound  arrangement,  a 
proper  proportion  of  parts,  simple  language,  and  concise, 
clear-cut  definitions,  enforced  by  copious  illustrations 
and  exercises.  The  authors  of  this  book  have  endeavored 
to  meet  all  these  requirements.  Previous  to  the  writing 
of  the  text  an  outline  of  the  book  was  sent  to  twenty 
teachers  of  rhetoric  in  the  leading  secondary  schools, 
and  suggestions  asked  for.  The  authors  have  given  due 
consideration  to  the  answers  received.  The  material  is 
chosen  from  what  has  been  found  valuable  in  the  class- 


vi  PREFA  CE. 

room,  and  those  points  are  made  most  prominent  which 
have  been  productive  of  best  results.  The  usual  order 
of  developing  the  theme,  beginning  with  words  and  work- 
ing up  to  the  whole  composition,  has  been  reversed.  In 
this  book  the  pupil  begins  with  the  theme  as  a  whole, 
and  his  mind  is  centered  upon  gathering  material. 
Ideas  and  not  words  are  his  first  consideration.  This 
is  the  natural  order  of  procedure,  and  is  confirmed  by 
psychological  and  pedagogical  reasons.  It  is  believed 
that  it  will  prove  to  be  an  important  feature  of  the 
book. 

The  authors  have  made  no  literary  pretensions  in  what 
they  have  written.  They  have  cared  principally  to  be 
understood  by  everyone  who  uses  the  text,  and  they 
have  been  glad  to  sacrifice  the  graces  of  style  for  the 
accomplishment  of  this  purpose.  To  this  end,  likewise, 
the  definitions  have  been  made  concise  and  to  the  point, 
with  abundant  *  illustrations  and  exercises.  This  last 
feature,  it  is  hoped,  will  be  a  boon  to  teacher  and  pupil 
alike,  helpful  to  one  and  stimulating  to  the  other. 
The  necessity  of  finding  something  for  the  pupils  to  do 
beyond  memorizing  the  words  of  a-  text  brings  gray 
hairs  to  the  head  of  the  over-worked  teacher  ;  it  is  easy 
for  him  to  leave  out  part  of  the  text,  but  it  is  far  from 
easy  to  supply  matter  for  the  pupil  to  work  with. 
Special  efforts  have  been  made  by  the  authors  to  relieve 
him  of  this  constant  strain.  In  the  limited  time  allotted 
to  the  study  of  composition  and  rhetoric  it  is  quite 
probable  that  the  entire  material  of  the  book  cannot  be 


PREFACE.  Vll 

used.  It  is  designed  to  cover  a  course  of  two  years  ; 
but  teachers  who  must  give  less  time  to  the  subject 
are  expected  to  make  such  choice  of  the  material  as  the 
circumstances  will  permit.  They  will  appreciate  the 
large  opportunities  of  choice  which  the  book  offers  to 
meet  their  needs. 

Roughly  speaking,  rhetoric  has  a  two-fold  function, 
—  to  teach  one  to  express  his  thoughts  with  business-like 
accuracy,  and  to  acquaint  him  with  the  graces  of  style 
and  the  artistic  effectiveness  of  language.  Many  schools 
do  not  have  time  for  more  than  the  first  of  these  pur- 
poses ;  and  to  meet  the  requirements  of  such  schools 
PARTS  I,  and  II.  —  Composition  and  The  Laws  of 
Good  Use  (see  Table  of  Contents)  —  are  published  in  a 
separate  volume,  together  with  an  appendix  on  punctua- 
tion, letter-writing,  good  and  bad  specimens  of  composi- 
tion, and  a  list  of  subjects  for  themes.  This  BRIEF 
COURSE  is  a  thorough  text  on  the  subject  of  correct 
English ;  the  COMPLETE  COURSE  extends  the  subject 
to  a  full  consideration  of  what  is  required  to  make  a 
composition  artistic  and  effective. 

Special  obligations  to  the  many  authors  of  rhetorics 
need  hardly  be  acknowledged.  The  writers  of  the 
present  work  have  had  recourse  to  the  whole  storehouse 
of  rhetorical  doctrine.  Their  indebtedness  is  general 
rather  than  specific.  Special  thanks  are  due,  however, 
to  Professor  L.  A.  Sherman  of  the  University  of 
Nebraska,  to  Professor  Sophie  C.  Hart  of  Wellesley, 
to  Mr.  Thomas  Hall  of  Harvard,  and  to  a  score  of 


viii  PREFACE. 

teachers  in  secondary  schools  for  kindly  suggestions. 
Thanks  are  also  due  to  the  various  publishers,  to  the 
Dial,  and  to  East  and  West  for  permission  to  use  ex- 
tracts from  their  publications.  The  work  of  Mrs.  Martha 
A.  L.  Lane,  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  in  revising  the  proof- 
sheets,  and  in  offering  timely  suggestions,  has  been  of 
great  value. 

L.  w.  s. 

j.  E.  T. 
NOVEMBER,  1900. 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Suggestions  to  Teachers xvii-xx 

INTRODUCTORY   CHAPTER. 

Requisites  for  Composition 3-4 

System  in  Composition 4-5 

The  Function  of  Rhetoric 5-6 

Distinction  between  an  Art  and  a  Science 6-7 

Distinction  between  Grammar  and  Rhetoric    . 7-8 

Authority  of  the  Principles  of  Rhetoric 8-9 

Writing  and  Talking :     .     .  9-1 1 

The  Habit  of  Correct  Speech    .  • n 

Exercises 11-14 

PART   I. 

Composition. 

CHAPTER  I.  —  THE  THEME. 

Preparatory  Themes 15-16 

Appearance  of  the  Manuscript' 16-17 

Sources  of  Material  for  Themes 17-18 

The  Subject 18-23 

Selection  of  Title 23~24 

Exercises 24-29 

CHAPTER  II.  —  THE  THEME  (Continued). 

Material  for  the  Theme '   30-33 

Organizing  the  Theme 33~35 

Development  of  the  Theme -35-38 

Exercises    , 38-41 

CHAPTER  III.  —  THE  PARAGRAPH. 

What  the  Paragraph  Is 42-44 

Importance  of  Paragraph 44-46 

Length  of  Paragraphs 46-49 

The  Topic  Sentence 49~53 

Exercises 53~59 

ix 


X  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. — THE  PARAGRAPH  (Continued").  PAGK 

Development  of  the  Paragraph 60 

Repetition 61-64 

Detail 64-68 

Specific  Examples 68-7 1 

Comparison  or  Contrast ?i~74 

Cause  and  Effect 74-76 

Proofs 76-77 

Irregular  Development 77—78 

Exercises 79-84 

CHAPTER   V.  —  THE  SENTENCE. 

The  Sentence,  the  Unit  of  Discourse 85 

What  a  Sentence  Is 85-87 

What  the  Sentence  may  Contain 87—88 

Compound  and  Complex  Sentences 88-90 

Subordination  in  the  Complex  Sentence 9°~93 

Sentence  Variety 93~97 

Sentence  Length 97 

Exercises 98-102 

CHAPTER   VI.  —  WORDS. 

What  Words  Are 103 

Sources  of  English  Words 103-107 

Anglo-Saxon  Element 107—109 

Classical  Element 109-114 

Comparison  of  the  Two  Elements 114-116 

Emotional  and  Intellectual  Characteristics  of  Words    ....  116-120 

The  Vocabulary 121-128 

Books  of  Synonyms  and  Concordances 128-129 

Exercises 129-131 

PART    II. 
Good  Use,  Discourse,  Style. 

CHAPTER   VII.  —  USAGE. 

Coirect  Expression 133—134 

Good  Use 134-135 

Present  Use 135-136 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS.  xi 

PAGE 

National  Use 136-140 

Reputable  Use 140-141 

Doubtful  Words M1 

Exercises 141-146 

CHAPTER  VIII.  — PURITY.     BARBARISMS. 

Application  of  the  Laws"of  Good  Use 14? 

Barbarisms 147-151 

Foreign  Words 148-149 

Slang I49-1 5°" 

New  Words 1 50 

New  Formations 150—151 

Abbreviations I51 

Exercises     .     .     . i52-J54 

CHAPTER  IX.  —  PROPRIETY.     IMPROPRIETIES. 

Propriety 155 

What  Improprieties  Are 1 55-1 56 

Causes  of  Improprieties 156-157 

Classes  of  Improprieties 157-171 

Idiomatic  English 171 

Unidiomatic  English ..."        172 

Exercises 172-177 

CHAPTER  X.  —  SOLECISMS. 

Solecisms 178-179 

Nouns  and  Pronouns 179—184 

Parts  of  Speech 184-187 

Redundant  and  Incomplete  Expressions 187-189 

Connectives  and  Correlatives 189-191 

Miscellaneous  Errors 191-193 

Exercises 193-198 

CHAPTER  XI.  —  THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE. 

What  Distinguishes  One  Form  of  Writing  from  Another     .     .  199-200 

Description 200-201 

Exercises  in  Descriptive  Writing 201-204 

Narration 204-206 

Exercises  in  Narration 206—207 


xii  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Exposition 207-209 

Exercises  in  Exposition 209-210 

Argumentation 211-215 

Exercises  in  Argumentation 215-218 

Exercises ...  .  218-220 


PART    III. 

Style. 
CHAPTER  XII.  —  DICTION:  SELECTION  OF  WORDS. 

Diction 221 

Number  of  Words 222-223 

Verbosity  and  Circumlocution 223-224 

Redundancy  and  Tautology 224-225 

Exercise 225-226 

Precision 227 

Choice  of  Words 228-231 

Style  as  Affected  by  Choice 231-233 

Force  as  a  Quality  of  Diction 234-236 

Exercise 237-238 

Elegance  as  a  Quality  of  Diction 238-240 

Exercise 240-243 

Fine  Writing 243-244 

Exercises 244-248 

CHAPTER  XIII.  —  DICTION  :  CHOICE  AND  ARRANGEMENT  OF  WORDS 
FOR  RHYTHM,  TONE-COLOR,  AND  EMPHASIS. 

Rhythm 249-251 

Rhythm  and  Coherence 252-252 

Tone-Color 254-256 

Elegance  as  Affected  by  Rhythm  and  Tone-Color 256-257 

The  General  Law  of  Emphasis 257-258 

How  Emphasis  is  Secured 258-261 

Selection  a  Form  of  Emphasis 262 

Force  and  Emphasis 262-263 

Exercises 264-266 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS.  xiii 

CHAPTER  XIV.  —  SENTENCES  :    SHORT  AND  LONG.        PAGK 

Unity  and  Coherence 268-268 

Clearness   . 269-269 

Rhetorical  Use  of  Short  and  Long  Sentences 269-273 

Oral  and  Written  Exercises 273-276 

Exercises 276-280 

CHAPTER  XV. —  SENTENCES:  LOOSE,  PERIODIC,  AND  BALANCED. 

Kinds  of  Sentences  and  Use 281-282 

The  Normal  English  Sentence 283-287 

Balanced  Sentences 287-290 

Style  as  Affected  by  Sentence-Form 290— ,291 

Exercises    . 291-295 

CHAPTER  XVI. — THE  PARAGRAPH. 

The  Nature  of  the  Paragraph 296 

Principles  of  Paragraph-Structure 297-298 

Unity  in  the  Paragraph    . 298-300 

Violations  of  Unity 300-302 

Variety  in  the  Paragraph 302-303 

Coherence  in  the  Paragraph 303-304 

Selection 304-306 

Coherent  Arrangement 306-308 

Use  of  Connectives 308-310 

Omission  of  Connecting  Words 310-311 

Mass  in  the  Paragraph 3TI-3T3 

Exercises 3I3~3I5 

CHAPTER  XVII.  —  THE  WHOLE  COMPOSITION. 

The  Relation  of  the  Whole  Composition  to  its  Parts       ....       316 

The  Plan 316-320 

The  Introduction '....'....  320-322 

The  Conclusion 322-323 

Principles  of  Style  Applied  to  the  Composition 323-326 

Exercises 326-328 


xiv  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

CHAPTER   XVIII.  —  FORMS  OF  LITERATURE  AND  METHODS  OF 
TREATMENT. 

Forms  of  Discourse 329-33° 

Literature  of  Full  Statement 33O-331 

Literature  of  Suggestion .  331-333 

Criticism 333-334 

Sources  of  Literary  Pleasure 334— 33^ 

Exercises 33^-337 

CHAPTER  XIX.  —  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE. 

The  Use  of  Figures 338-340 

Simile  and  Metaphor 340-341 

Personification 341 

Synecdoche  and  Metonymy 441-342 

Antithesis 342 

Historical  Present 342—343 

Exclamation  and  Rhetorical  Question 342 

Other  Figures 343 

The  Effect  of  Figures  of  Speech  .     .     . 343-344 

Exercises  „ 344—346 

PART    IV. 

Prosody. 

CHAPTER  XX.  —  THE  FORMAL  ELEMENTS  OF  POETRY. 

Poetry  Defined 347-348 

Poetic  Diction 348 

Kinds  of  Poetry 348-350 

Terms  Applied  to  Poetry 350 

Meter 35J-352 

Accented  and  Long  Syllables 352-353 

Length  of  Lines 353~354 

Other  Meters       .:...' 354~355 

The  Prevailing  English  Verse 355-356 

Special  Verse  Forms 356 

Exercises 357 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS.  xv 

APPENDICES.  PAGE 

APPENDIX  A.  —  PUNCTUATION  AND  THE  USE  OF  CAPITALS. 

Importance  of  Punctuation 358 

Rules  of  Punctuation 359 

Comma 360-362 

Semicolon 362-363 

Colon 363 

Other  Punctuation  Marks 364-366 

Capital  Letters 366-367 

APPENDIX  B.  —  LETTER-WRITING. 

What  Makes  a  Good  Letter 368-369 

Parts  of  a  Letter 389-373 

Formal  Notes  of  Invitation 374 

The  Superscription 374 

APPENDIX  C. 
Examples  of  Defective  Composition 37S-3&6 

APPENDIX  D. 
Additional  Exercises 387-398 


SUGGESTIONS   TO    TEACHERS. 


ALTHOUGH  every  teacher  necessarily  uses  a  text-book 
in  accordance  with  his  own  class-room  methods,  some 
few  suggestions  here  may  simplify  the  work  of  adapt- 
ing these  methods  to  this  particular  book.  Under 
present  conditions  of  school  work,  the  study  of  rhetoric 
consists  of  a  minimum  of  rhetorical  doctrine  and  a 
maximum  of  practical  composition.  Such  a  course 
undoubtedly  produces  the  best  results.  Accordingly, 
the  authors  of  the  present  book  have  assumed  that 
classes  in  which  the  book  is  used  will  do  a  great  deal  of 
writing.  To  this  end  an  abundance  of  material  has  been 
provided,  both  in  the  exercises  and  in  the  Appendix. 
In  the  latter  this  material  is  given  in  such  a  variety  of 
forms  as  to  be  equivalent  to  additional  exercises  cover- 
ing almost  all  the  work  in  the  book.  The  class  can  be 
required  to  write  upon  some  of  these  subjects  at  once  ; 
and  it  would  be  well,  perhaps,  to  demand  such  work  in 
connection  with  the  study  of  so  much  of  each  chapter 
as  precedes  the  exercises.  In  case  there  is  not  suffi- 
cient time  for  this,  however,  a  lesson  may  be  assigned 
covering  a  few  pages  at  the  beginning  of  the  chapter 
and  some  of  the  first  exercises  ;  for  instance,  for  the 


X-Vill  SUGGESTIONS   TO    TEACHERS. 

first  lesson,  the  Introductory  Chapter  to  section  7,  and 
exercises  i  and  2,  page  12.  The  teacher  should  see 
that  each  lesson  as  assigned  includes  something  from 
the  exercises.  This  will  give  the  recitation  a  more 
varied  interest,  and  will  help  the  pupil  to  rely  upon  his 
own  conclusions  rather  than  upon  his  memory  of  the 
text. 

Although  the  study  of  the  text  is  not  an  end  in  itself, 
but  a  means  to  an  end,  the  teacher,  while  encouraging 
the  pupil  to  think  for  himself,  cannot  be  too  careful  to 
insist  upon  his  reaching  some  definite  understanding  of 
rhetorical  doctrine.  The  class  may  do  a  great  deal  of 
writing  without  getting  much  benefit  from  it,  unless  the 
teacher  is  watchfully  critical,  and  in  his  criticisms  suc- 
ceeds in  making  clear  the  exact  reason  for  his  objections 
to  the  form  or  the  phrasing  which  the  pupil  has  employed. 

It  is  not  intended,  of  course,  that  all  chapters,  or  all 
topics  in  a  chapter,  shall  receive  the  same  consideration. 
A  careful  reading  of  topic  I  in  the  Introductory  Chapter 
is  all  that  will  be  necessary,  while  topic  7  will  require 
some  comment  from  the  teacher.  Topics  2  and  3  will 
need  some  study,  for  it  is  important  that  the  pupil  should 
understand  the  purpose  of  composition  and  of  rhetoric. 
Finally,  the  whole  Introductory  Chapter  will  require 
much  less  study  than  the  chapters  upon  the  theme,  the 
paragraph,  the  sentence,  etc.,  because  these  chapters  are 
fundamental.  Likewise  it  may  not  be  possible  to  take 
all  the  exercises.  Each  teacher  must  be  governed  by 
circumstances,  and  if  he  cannot  take  all,  he  should  choose 


SUGGESTIONS    TO    TEACHERS.  xix 

those  best  suited  to  his  work.  Above  all,  let  the  exer- 
cises be  suggestive  to  the  pupil.  Many  of  them  may 
recall  to  his  mind  something  far  better  for  the  occasion. 
Thus  his  inventive  powers  are  stimulated. 

We  may  now  consider  the  teacher's  task  of  correcting 
the  written  work.  How  much  may  be  wisely  attempted  ? 
In  general,  correction  of  written  work  should  be  con- 
fined to  those  matters  which  are  at  the  time  under  con- 
sideration, or  have  already  been  taken  up.  It  is 
important  that  at  first  criticism  be  not  too  severe, 
lest  the  ease  and  pleasurable  spontaneity  with  which 
the  pupil  writes  be  turned  into  hesitating  diffidence. 
Occasionally  a  paper  should  be  re-written  ;  but  if  too 
much  of  this  is  demanded,  the  work  will  lose  interest 
and  become  mechanical.  It  will  often  be  advisable  to 
discuss  subjects  in  the  class-room  before  the  pupil 
writes  upon  them,  such  discussion  quickening  interest 
in  the  theme,  and  setting  in  motion  definite  trains  of 
thought.  Sometimes  it  will  be  well  to  let  each  member 
of  the  class  correct  the  written  exercise  of  some  one 
else.  This  will  develop  the  critical  faculty  of  the  pupil, 
and  relieve  the  teacher  ;  but  the  criticisms  should  be 
stated  and  defended  in  the  class,  and  when  they  are 
vague  and  lacking  in  clearness  the  teacher  should  ex- 
plain them  carefully  himself. 

Finally,  the  teacher  should  attempt  as  much  as  possi- 
ble to  connect  the  lesson  of  to-day  with  previous  lessons, 
showing  that  the  sentence  should  be  coherent  for  the 
same  reason  that  the  paragraph  should  be  a  unified 


XX 


SUGGESTIONS   TO    TEACHERS. 


whole,  and  that  the  same,  literary  principle  is  involved 
in  the  use  of  figures  as  in  the  arrangement  of  words  in 
the  sentence  for  the  purpose  of  securing  emphasis. 
When  in  his  writing  the  pupil  has  come  to  refer  the 
various  problems  of  literary  art  to  a  few  elementary 
principles  —  Emphasis,  Harmony,  Proportion,  Cohe- 
rence, and  some  others  —  his  difficulties  have  been 
greatly  simplified.  If  the  discussion  of  the  class-room 
leads  every  question  back  to  simple  basic  principles,  it 
will  be  an  easier  matter  to  make  the  pupil  feel  the  unity 
of  rhetorical  doctrine  as  a  whole. 

Although  the  employment  of  abbreviations  to  indicate 
faults  in  a  MS.  is  largely  a  matter  of  individual  choice, 
those  that  follow  may  appeal  to  some  who  make  use  of 
the  book. 


Amb.  —  Ambiguous. 

Aivk. — Awkward. 

Brb.  —  Barbarism. 

Cd.  —  Condense. 

Con.  —  Connection  imperfectly 

shown. 

F.  F.  —  Fault  in  figure. 
Gr.  —  Bad  grammar. 
Inc. —  Incoherent. 
Imp.  —  Impropriety. 
Kpg.  —  Not  in  keeping. 
L.  —  Sentences  unduly  loose. 
L.  c.  —  No  capital  needed. 
Obs.  —  Obscure. 
Out.  —  Omit. 
P.  —  Punctuation  faulty. 
Pr.  —  Prolixity. 


Sp.—  Spelling. 

77.  —  Tautology. 

7>.  —  Transpose. 

Un.  —  Lacking  in  unity. 

V.  —  Vague. 

Var.  —  Lacking  in  variety. 

Vbs.  —  Verbose. 

Tf  —  Make  new  paragraph. 

No  IT  —  No  new  paragraph. 

!  or  ! ! —  Pretentious  language. 

?  —  False  or  doubtful  statement. 

A  —  Insert  letter,  word,  or  punc- 
tuation mark. 

^  —  Bring  together  separated 
parts  of  words. 

X  —  Fault  to  be  learned  from  dis- 
cussion with  instructor. 


COMPOSITION    AND    RHETORIC. 


True  ease  in  writing  comes  from  art,  not  chance, 
As  those  move  easiest  who  have  learned  to  dance. 
'Tis  not  enough  no  harshness  gives  offence  ; 
The  sound  must  seem  an  echo  to  the  sense. 

POPE  :  Essay  on  Criticism. 


COMPOSITION 

AND 

RHETORIC. 


INTRODUCTORY   CHAPTER. 

i.    Requisites  for  Composition If  we  are  to  write 

anything  which  shall  give  interest  and  pleasure  to 
others  two  things  are  necessary  :  we  must  have  some- 
thing to  say,  and  we  must  know  how  to  say  it. 
Evidently,  the  ability  to  express  ourselves  well  can  be 
of  little  use  to  us  until  we  have  satisfied  the  first  of 
these  requisites.  Finding  something  to  say  is  ordi- 
narily the  great  problem  of  all  of  us  who  are  called 
upon  to  write,  whether  in  school  or  elsewhere.  It  is 
not  merely  that  we  have  nothing  to  express,  for  most  of 
us  are  talking  a  great  part  of  the  time,  but  that  we 
feel  the  greater  importance  of  the  written  word,  and 
do  not  readily  satisfy  ourselves  that  our  thoughts  and 
feelings  are  of  sufficient  importance  to  make  it  worth 
while  putting  them  down  in  writing.  This  feeling  of 
the  inadequacy  of  what  we  might  say  checks  the  flow 

3 


4  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

of  our  thoughts.  Further,  we  feel  that  we  cannot 
present  the  things  that  we  have  in  mind  in  their  clearest 
and  most  attractive  form.  There  are  few  of  us,  perhaps, 
who  cannot  remember  how  difficult  it  was,  in  our  first 
years  at  school,  to  make  ourselves  understood.  There 
were  explanations  which  we  could  have  made  as  clear  as 
crystal  in  the  class-room,  had  we  known  just  how  to 
express  the  thought  that  we  held  with  so  sure  a  grasp. 
How  many  times  have  we  recalled  the  words  of  Portia, 
in  "The  Merchant  of  Venice,"  "If  to  do  were  as  easy 
as  to  know  what  were  good  to  do,  chapels  had  been 
churches,  and  poor  men's  cottages  princes'  palaces." 
What  we  need  is  something  to  help  us  convey  our 
thoughts  to  others  clearly,  forcibly,  and  gracefully. 
The  practice  of  composition  and  the  study  of  rhetoric 
are  the  sources  to  which  we  must  look  for  help  in  sur- 
mounting our  difficulties. 

2.    System  in  Composition When  we  would  write 

our  thoughts  out  for  others,  we  should  bear  in  mind 
that  what  we  have  to  say  must  be  arranged  in  some  sort 
of  organic  system,  so  that  one  detail  shall  grow  into 
another,  and  the  whole  shall  result  in  rounded  complete- 
ness. Composition  is  a  placing  of  something  with 
something.  In  reality,  it  is  a  placing  together  of  our 
thoughts  in  an  orderly  way.  Our  composition  when 
complete  must  follow  one  line  of  thought ;  that  is,  there 
must  be  unity.  Each  part  of  the  composition  must 
have  a  definite  relation  to  some  other  part,  and  this 
relation  must  be  clear.  In  addition  to  unity,  then,  a 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER.  5 

composition  must  have  coherence  ;  it  must  stick  together. 
Composition,  indeed,  may  be  defined  as  the  putting 
together  of  several  elements  so  as  to  produce  a  unified 
and  coherent  whole. 

3.  The  Function  of  Rhetoric — The  ability  to  choose 
proper  words,  and  to  put  them  together  into  sentences, 
is  not  alone  sufficient  for  a  satisfactory  expression  of 
our  thoughts.  If  I  should  say :  "  The  man  wept  on 
hearing  of  the  death  of  his  mother,"  the  assertion 
might  be  accurate  in  fact  and  correct  in  grammar,  and 
yet  fail  altogether  to  convey  the  real  emotional  value  of 
what  I  have  in  mind.  For  effective  writing  we  must 
say  what  we  have  to  say  so  that  our  readers  or  hearers 
may  see  exactly  as  we  see,  and  feel  exactly  as  we  feel. 
It  is  the  part  of  rhetoric  to  enable  us  to  do  this.  The 
study  of  rhetoric  should  develop  in  us  a  clear  under- 
standing of  literary  qualities,  it  should  give  us  confi- 
dence in  our  work,  and  it  should  enable  us  to  present 
our  thoughts  in  such  fashion  that  they  will  make  as 
great  an  appeal  as  possible  to  the  sympathetic  interest 
of  our  readers.  We  should  not  hope,  through  the  aid 
of  the  study  of  rhetoric,  to  make  the  trivial  appear 
important  or  the  vulgar,  polished  and  refined.  It  should 
be  remembered,  also,  that  the  rules  of  rhetoric  will  but 
hamper  us,  if  we  do  not  come  to  such  an  understanding 
of  the  reasons  for  them  as  will  enable  us  to  use  our 
own  judgment  under  their  guidance.  Do  not,  then, 
confound  a  knowledge  of  text-book  definitions  with  the 
skill  acquired  by  applying  them  in  practice.  Do  not 


6  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

think  that  any  text-book  suggests  everything.  A  book 
that  should  deal  with  every  specific  problem  of  effective 
writing  could  not  be  written,  and  if  written  would  be  of 
little  practical  value.  Books  teach  us  to  think  for  our- 
selves, train  us  in  our  tastes,  develop  our  powers  of 
literary  discernment.  They  must  be  supplemented  by 
practical  experience  in  writing.  The  important  thing  to 
be  acquired  is  not  a  knowledge  of  rhetorical  theory,  but 
training  in  literary  judgment.  Rhetoric  we  may  define, 
in  conclusion,  as  the  art  of  expressing  ourselves  in  words 
in  the  most  pleasing  and  most  effective  manner. 

4.  The  Relation  between  Composition  and  Rhetoric.  — 
It  will  be  seen  that  the  relation  between  composition  and 
rhetoric  is  very  close ;  indeed,  just  what  part  each  plays 
in  the  effective  expression  of  our  thought  it  is  hard  to 
point   out.      It  is  not  important   that  we  should    keep 
in  mind   just  where  one  ends  and    the    other    begins. 
Rhetoric   and    composition  are    inseparably    connected, 
and  so  blend  in  their  offices  that  they  form,  rather,  one 
educational  method.     We  may  get  a  tolerably  clear  idea 
of  the  field  covered  by  each  if  we  think  of  composition 
as    the    building-up    process,    and    of    rhetoric    as    the 
smoothing  and  refining  process,  remembering  that  skill 
in  either  comes  only  from  practice. 

5.  Distinction  between  an  Art  and  a  Science.  —  Rhet- 
oric is  an  art  and  not  a  science.     The  distinction  be- 
tween an  art  and  a  science  is  this  :  an  art  implies  skill,  a 
science  implies  knowledge.     The  basis  of  an  art  is  prac- 
tice ;  of  a  science,  law.     A  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  a 
science  is  a  knowledge  of  the  science  itself.     Thus,  we 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER.  7 

may  know  a  science  without  practicing  it.  In  physics, 
for  example,  we  perform  experiments  to  get  at  the 
underlying  law,  not  to  become  skilled  in  the  perform- 
ance. Every  art  has  certain  underlying  principles,  and 
to  that  extent  partakes  of  the  nature  of  a  science ;  but 
there  is  this  difference,  we  do  not  make  a  study  of  the 
principles  for  their  own  sake,  but  use  them  simply  to 
guide  us  in  our  practice.  A  knowledge  of  the  princi- 
ples of  music  would  never  make  us  musicians.  We 
become  proficient  in  music  according  as  we  attain  skill 
by  practice.  Like  music  and  painting,  rhetoric  is  an 
art ;  like  them,  it  has  underlying  principles  to  guide  us ; 
but  as  students  of  rhetoric  we  are  chiefly  concerned 
with  the  skill  attained  in  applying  these  principles. 

6.  Distinction  between  Grammar  and  Rhetoric.  —  We 
should  distinguish  carefully  between  grammar  and  rhet- 
toric.  It  is  the  duty  ot  grammar  to  make  clear  the  rules 
which  govern  the  correct  use  of  words  in  a  sentence. 
Grammar  deals  with  the  forms  and  offices  of  words,  and 
their  relations  to  one  another  in  the  sentence.  It  tells 
us  whether  to  use  the  singular  or  the  plural  of  a  noun, 
what  an  adjective  or  an  adverb  should  modify,  or  the 
relation  of  a  verb  to  its  subject.  It  tells  us,  in  fact, 
how  to  write  a  correct  sentence.  Its  field  does  not 
extend  beyond  the  sentence. 

Rhetoric  may  be  said  to  begin  where  grammar  ends. 
Like  grammar  it  deals  with  words ;  but  it  concerns 
itself  rather  with  the  choice,  the  number,  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  words  in  the  sentence  that  will  make  them 


8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

effective.  It  tells  us  whether  to  use  a  long  or  a  short 
sentence,  how  to  arrange  the  sentences  in  a  paragraph, 
and  how  to  combine  the  paragraphs  into  an  effective 
whole.  In  rhetoric  it  is  not  the  question  of  whether  a 
thing  is  right  or  wrong,  but  whether  one  thing  is  better 
than  another.  However,  to  secure  the  best  results,  it 
is  necessary  to  introduce  some  of  the  less  familiar  rules 
of  grammar  into  a  text-book  of  rhetoric  to  refresh  the 
student's  memory. 

7.  The  Principles  of  Rhetoric  and  their  Authority.  — 
We  naturally  ask  ourselves,  Whence  come  the  principles 
of  rhetoric  ?  and  why  should  we  follow  them  ?  Suppose 
that  we  wish  to  paint  pictures.  We  might  of  ourselves 
by  long  practice  produce  fair  results ;  but  more  proba- 
bly we  should  go  to  some  successful  painter  for  instruc- 
tion. We  should  expect  him  to  tell  us  something  of 
the  principles  he  has  followed  in  the  choice  of  colors, 
in  the  mixing  and  the  blending  of  them,  the  rules  of 
optics,  etc.;  we  should  naturally  follow  his  course.  It 
is  just  so  in  our  writing.  We  wish  to  become  good 
writers,  and  so  we  follow  the  methods  by  which  our  best 
writers  have  attained  their  success.  Now,  the  princi- 
ples of  rhetoric  are  only  concise  statements  of  how 
these  writers  have  made  themselves  masters  of  their 
art.  They  simply  record  the  experience  of  our  superiors. 
They  are  not  arbitrary  laws  for  what  we  must  do,  and 
what  we  must  not  do.  They  are  not  morally  binding. 
We  are  free  to  express  ourselves  as  we  please ;  but 
there  is  this  drawback  ;  we  must  use  words  and  expres- 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER.  9 

sions  as  other  people  use  them,  or  we  shall  not  be 
understood  ;  and  that  is  our  only  object  in  writing.  In 
brief,  we  must  express  ourselves  in  accordance  with 
good  usage.  The  principles  of  rhetoric  have,  largely,  good 
usage  for  their  authority. 

8.  Writing  and  Talking.  —  There  are  those  who  con- 
tend that  our  written  language  should  be  the  same  as 
our  speech  —  that  we  should  write  as  we  talk.  Per- 
haps it  would  be  more  correct  to  say  that  they  would 
have  us  talk  as  we  write.  Unquestionably  the  ten- 
dency in  English  prose  has  for  a  long  time  been  towards 
an  easier,  more  conversational,  and  less  formal  style. 
Yet  it  is  not  possible,  or  even  desirable,  for  us  ever  to 
make  our  writing  and  our  talking  alike.  The  easy 
spontaneity  of  conversation,  the  rapid  change  of  subject 
that  keeps  interest  alive,  the  ready  adjustment  of  each 
speaker  to  the  mood  of  the  other,  are  things  that  make 
our  talk  very  different  from  what  our  writing  ordinarily 
must  be.  In  talking  we  decide  each  moment,  and  in 
fact  each  second,  what  effect  our  last  words  have  had  on 
our  hearers  ;  and  we  frame  our  next  words  to  correct 
that  effect  or  emphasize  it,  as  the  case  may  be.  This 
we  cannot  do  when  we  write.  The  effect  of  each  sen- 
tence and  each  phrase  must  be  weighed  beforehand,  and 
we  must  shape  the  course  of  our  writing  accordingly. 
Moreover,  our  personal  relations  with  our  readers  are 
not  the  same  as  those  that  we  assume  with  our  hearers 
when  we  are  in  conversation.  They  are  strangers,  and 
we  should  not  adopt  with  them  so  informal  an  air  as 


10  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

with  friends.  Even  among  those  whom  we  know  some- 
what closely  we  change  our  mode  of  speech  to  agree 
with  their  varying  characters  and  the  varying  degrees  of 
intimacy  we  maintain  with  them.  In  our  writing  we 
must  always  be  so  formally  careful  as  to  make  sure 
that  we  do  not  offend  any  of  our  readers.  We  will 
take  some  examples  of  oral  and  written  composition, 
and  note  some  of  the  differences  in  the  manner  of  ex- 
pression. 

"  He's  gone  a  long  time.  Can't  you  see  him  down  the 
road  ?  Look !  What  is  that  figure  behind  the  trees  ? 
It's  moving !  Don't  you  see  the  dust  rising  in  the 
road  ?  " 

George  Dane  had  waked  up  to  a  bright  new  day ;  the 
face  of  nature,  well  washed  by  last  night's  downpour,  and 
shining  as  with  high  spirits,  good  resolutions,  lively  inten- 
tions —  the  great  glare  of  recommencement,  in  short,  fixed 
in  his  patch  of  sky.  He  had  sat  up  late  to  finish  work 
—  arrears  overwhelming  !  —  then  at  last  had  gone  to  bed 
with  the  pile  but  little  reduced.  He  was  now  to  return 
to  it  after  the  pause  of  the  night ;  but  he  could  only  look 
at  it,  for  the  time,  over  the  bristling  hedge  of  letters 
planted  by  the  early  postman  an  hour  before,  and  already 
on  the  customary  table  by  his  chimney-place,  formally 
rounded  and  squared  by  his  systematic  servant. 

HENRY  JAMES  :   The  Great  Good  Place. 

The  second  of  these  paragraphs  shows  a  finish  that 
would  make  it  seem  stiff  if  it  were  an  example  of  con- 
versational English.  In  the  first  the  contractions,  the 
abrupt  changes  in  the  order  of  thought,  the  omission  of 
connecting  words  and  phrases,  all  indicate  that  it  is  the 


INTROD  UCTOR  Y  CHA P  TER.  1 1 

immediate  expression  of  thought  and  feeling  in  the 
spoken  word.  The  character  of  all  speech,  whether  oral 
or  written,  should  be  determined  by  its  fitness  for  sub- 
ject, speaker,  occasion,  and  hearer,  and  certainly  these 
will  differ  in  oral  and  written  discourse. 

9.  The  Habit  of  Correct  Speech. —  We  should  be  very 
careful  to  cultivate  the  habit  of  correct  speech  in  our 
ordinary  conversation ;  because,  if  we  are  careful  to 
speak  correctly,  we  shall  soon  acquire  the  habit  of  writ- 
ing correctly.  Slovenly  speech,  like  a  slovenly  habit, 
savors  of  vulgarity  and  low  associations  ;  but  it  has 
another  effect, —  it  begets  slovenly  writing.  The  boy 
who  carelessly  says  in  school,  "I  ain't  got  no  book,"  or 
"I  can't  do  them  examples,"  will  find  it  difficult  to 
preserve  care  in  writing.  In  general,  language  once 
within  our  control  can  be  employed  for  oral  or  written 
discourse.  As  we  talk  much  more  than  we  write,  the 
opportunities  for  oral  practice  greatly  outnumber  those 
for  written  ;  consequently  our  oral  practice  plays  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  development  of  literary  power.  It 
is  of  the  greatest  importance,  then,  that  every  teacher 
should  insist  on  the  pupils'  cultivating  correct  speech  in 
the  every-day  talk  of  the  class-room. 

EXERCISES. 

Let  each  answer  consist  of  at  least  one  complete 
sentence.  See  that  your  manuscript  is  neat,  your  hand- 
writing legible,  and  your  spelling  correct. 


12  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

1 .  What  are  some  of  the  difficulties  you  have  found  in 
expressing  your  thoughts  ?      Recall  and  write  out   some 
explanation   which  you  have  recently  found   difficult   in 
the  class-room.     Why  should  you  regard  composition  as 
a  pleasure  ? 

2.  How  do  you  think  rhetoric  will  help  you  ?    What  do 
you  understand  the  function  of  rhetoric  to  be  ?      Write  a 
brief  distinction  between  an  art  and  a  science.     Compare 
rhetoric  as   an   art  with    music    or    painting.      Tell  why 
chemistry  is.  a  science. 

3.  Write  a  brief  distinction  between  rhetoric  and  gram- 
mar.    To  what  extent  should  you  obey  the  principles  of 
rhetoric  ?     What  do  you  understand  by  "  good  usage  "  ? 
Why  is  it  important  to  think  before  you  write  ?     How  can 
you  acquire  the  habit  of  correct  speech  ? 

4.  Give  an  account  of  what  you  saw  while  on  your  way 
to  school  this  morning.     Write  the  conversation,  real  or 
imaginary,  that  you  had  with  your  friend  while  on  the  way 
to  school.     Give  the  conversation  during  some  interesting 
hour  of  the  school  session.     Give  an  account  of  your  last 
bicycle    ride.       Tell    what   you    think    of   your    different 
studies. 

5.  Say  which  of   the  following   paragraphs    have  the 
form  of  oral  or  written  discourse,  and  rewrite  each  in  the 
other  form.     Give  your  reasons  for  thinking  that  each  is 
written  or  oral  in  form,  and  show  what  you  have  changed 
to  give  it  a  new  character. 

Hello,  John  !  Going  to  school  ?  Let's  take  this  car. 
Jump  aboard.  There's  a  vacant  seat.  I  nearly  lost  my 
balance  then.  What's  the  matter  now  ?  Oh  !  it's  a  wagon 
stuck  on  the  track.  Hope  it  won't  delay  us  long.  Let's 
walk  the  rest  of  the  way.  Don't  go  so  fast !  I  can't 
breathe  !  There's  the  bell  ringing  now !  Hurry  up  ! 

Yet,  too,  he  struggled.  He  realized  at  moments  what 
he  was  doing,  and  his  cheek  grew  pale  at  the  idea  that  he 
was  juggling  with  his  conscience  and  soul.  He  tried  to 
attend  to  the  talk,  and  could  only  succeed  in  listening  for 


INTRODUCTORY  C PI  AFTER.  1 3 

the  sound  of  her  voice.  He  kept  no  more  hold  on  the 
conversation  than  was  sufficient  to  allow  him  to  put  in  a* 
word  now  and  then  to  cover  his  preoccupation.  He 
feigned  to  be  interested,  to  be  as  usual ;  but  all  his  blood 
was  trembling  and  tumbling  with  this  new  delirium,  and 
all  struggles  to  forget  his  passion  only  increased  its  in- 
tensity. ARLO  BATES  :  The  Puritan^ 

Oh  1  we  got  there  all  right.  Of  course  we  were  covered 
with  mud.  John  doesn't  know  how  to  carry  an  umbrella. 
The  water  trickled  down  my  back.  I  got  into  a  mud 
puddle,  and  the  water  came  over  my  shoes.  Jennie  fell 
once,  too  ;  look  at  that  mud  on  her  arm  !  John's  a  miser- 
able failure  as  an  escort. 


6.  Re-write  the  following  selections  throughout,  chan- 
ging each  direct  quotation  to  the  indirect  form. 

Barret  pressed  his  lips  together,  and  shook  his  head. 

"  You  can't  send  him  away  like  that,"  he  said ;  he  is 
a  very  important  young  man." 

"  Find  out  how  much  he  will  take,  then,"  exclaimed  the 
king  angrily,  "  and  give  it  to  him.  I  can  better  afford  to 
pay  blackmail  to  any  amount  than  have  my  plans  spoiled 
now  by  the  newspapers.  Give  him  what  he  wants  —  a  fur 
coat  —  they  always  wear  fur  coats  —  or  five  thousand 
francs,  or  something  —  anything,  but  get  rid  of  him." 

Barret  stirred  uneasily  in  his  chair,  and  shrugged  his 
shoulders.  "  He  is  not  a  boulevard  journalist,"  he  re- 
plied sulkily. 

"  Your  majesty  is  thinking  of  Hungarian  Jews  at 
Vienna,"  explained  Kalanay,  "who  live  on  chantage 
and  the  Monte  Carlo  propaganda  fund.  This  man  is  not 
in  their  class ;  he  is  not  to  be  bought.  I  said  he  was  an 
American." 

1  Permission  oi  Houghton,  Mifflin  £  Co.,  Publishers. 


14  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

"  An  American ! "  exclaimed  Mrs.  Carson  and  her 
daughter,  exchanging  rapid  glances.  "Is  it  Archie  Gor- 
don you  mean  ?  "  the  girl  asked.  "  I  thought  he  was  in 
China." 

"  That  is  the  man — Archie  Gordon.  He  writes  books, 
and  explores  places,"  Kalanay  answered. 

"  I  know  him.  He  wrote  a  book  on  the  slave-trade  in 
the  Congo,"  contributed  Colonel  Erhaupt.  "  I  met  him 
at  Zanzibar.  What  does  he  want  with  us  ?  " 

"He  was  in  Yokoham.  when  the  Japanese-Chinese  war 
broke  out,"  said  Kalanay,  turning  to  the  king;  "  and  he 
cabled  a  London  paper  he  would  follow  the  war  for  it  if 
they  paid  him  a  hundred  a  week.  He  meant  American 
dollars ;  but  they  thought  he  meant  pounds,  so  they 
cabled  back  that  they  would  pay  one-half  the  sum.  He 
answered,  '  One  hundred  or  nothing ' ;  and  they  finally 
assented  to  that,  and  he  started ;  when  the  first  week's 
remittance  arrived,  and  he  received  five  hundred  dollars 
instead  of  the  one  hundred  he  expected,  he  sent  back  the 
difference." 

"  What  a  remarkable  young  man  !  "  exclaimed  the  king. 
"  He  is  much  too  good  for  daily  wear.  We  don't  want 
anyone  like  that  around  here,  do  we  ? " 

RICHARD  HARDING  DAVIS  ;   The  King's  Jackal?- 

1  Permission  of  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  publishers. 


PART   I. 

COMPOSITION. 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE    TPIKME. 

10.  Preparatory  Themes.  —  At  this  stage  of  our  study 
of  the  art  of  writing  we  shall  not  be  able  to  write  very 
acceptably,  perhaps,  but  it  is  important  for  us  to  begin 
the  work  of  writing  at  once.  In  these  preparatory 
themes,  as  we  shall  call  them,  we  should  not  strive  for 
effect,  or  try  to  be  pretentious  or  elaborate.  If  we 
observe  closely  the  events  of  the  day  we  shall  find  much 
that  may  be  of  interest,  not  only  to  ourselves,  but  to 
others,^ —  the  ball-game,  the  bicycle-ride,  an  occurrence 
on  the  street,  or  our  studies. '  These  will  furnish  material 
for  short  themes  ;  and  in  them  we  should  now  try  merely 
to  be  natural,  and  to  write  directly  and  simply.  We 
will  first  get  into  the  writing  habit,  and  when  we  have 
come  to  feel  at  ease  with  a  pen  in  the  hand  we  may 
attempt  writing  that  demands  more  of  us.  At  the  same 
time  we  can  improve  the  opportunities  to  perfect  our- 
selves in  the  minor  matters  which  contribute  so  much 

15 


1 6  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

to  the  excellence  of  a  manuscript,  such  as  neatness,  care 
in  handwriting,  spelling,  punctuation,  and  margins,  all  of 
which  add  much  to  the  pleasure  of  our  readers. 

ii.  The  Appearance  of  the  Manuscript.  — Any  writing 
which  is  to  have  genuine  value  and  interest  .must,  as  we 
have  seen,  be  orderly  in  arrangement.  As  a  first  step 
towards*  the  development  of  orderly  habits  in  the  writer, 
as  well  as  towards  giving  the  reader  the  impression  of 
orderliness,  we  may  give  attention  to  the  appearance  of 
the  manuscript.  It  should  be  written  neatly  and  legibly 
on  one  side  of  the  paper  only.  The  sequence  and  con- 
nection of  ideas  can  be  but  imperfectly  understood  by 
the  instructor,  if  the  manuscript  is  difficult  to  read,  and 
the  good  qualities  which  it  may  possess  will  not  be 
apparent.  Ruled  white  paper,  such  as  is  usually  pro- 
vided by  the  school  authorities,  will  answer ;  and,  if 
folded  at  all,  it  should  be  lengthwise.  Care  should  be 
taken  to  leave  a  blank  space  between  the  title  and  the 
body  of  the  writing.  At  the  left  of  every  page  a  margin 
of  an  inch  should  be  left,  and  the  first  line  of  every 
paragraph  should  be  indented  another  inch  or  more. 
According  to  custom  the  important  words  of  titles  begin 
with  capitals.  The  title  may  be  followed  by  a  period  or 
not,  as  pleases  the  taste  of  the  writer.  The  more  recent 
method  is  to  omit  the  period,  which  is,  however,  very 
generally  employed. 

Plain,  legible  handwriting  and  correct  spelling  are  the 
first  essentials  of  a  good  theme.  They  go  far  to  atone 
for  rhetorical  deficiencies  and  to  attract  attention  to  any 


THE    THEME.  I/ 

composition  ;  but  above  all  they  develop  in  the  mind  of 
the  pupil  that  regard  for  the  appearance  of  his  manu- 
script which  neatness  and  courtesy  demand.  Careless 
handwriting  and  spelling  are  evidences  of  slovenliness, 
which  all  should  avoid. 

Before  taking  up  theme  work  it  is  assumed  that  the 
pupil  is  familiar  with  elementary  grammar.  Conse- 
quently he  should  be  careful  to  avoid  the  errors  and 
vulgarisms  so  common  in  his  every-day  talk.  Gram- 
matical correctness  is  sure  to  impress 'the  mind  of  the 
reader  pleasantly  towards  what  he  reads. 

12.  Sources  of  Material  for  Themes.  —  We  gather 
information  in  two  ways,  first,  through  experience,  and, 
second,  from  the  experience  of  others.  This  last  may 
be  communicated  to  us  orally,  in  which  case  it  approaches 
personal  experience,  or  through  the  medium  of  the 
printed  page.  Almost  always  when  there  is  a  special 
subject  upon  which  we  wish  to  gain  information  beyond 
what  we  have  we  must  appeal  to  books.  This  material 
taken  at  second-hand  is  not  so  vitally  our  possession  as 
is  that  which  has  been  a  part  of  the  life  we  have  lived. 
We  should  first,  then,  cultivate  the  habit  of  observation, 
and  make  everything  that  we  see  or  hear  contribute  to 
the  enrichment  of  our  minds.  Information  seemingly  of 
the  most  trivial  consequence  may  at  any  moment  become 
of  great  importance  to  us.  In  our  reading  we  should 
remember  that  too  much  careless  skimming  of  news- 
papers or  other  ephemeral  productions,  which  we  must 
naturally  forget,  weakens  the  memory,  and  makes  our 


18  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

hold  upon  what  we  know  and  wish  to  know  less  sure  and 
trustworthy.  Writing  may  be  concerned  only  with  a 
sort  of  reporting  of  the  things  we  know,  but  ordinarily  it 
attempts  more  than  this.  All  good  reasoning  is  more 
or  less  syllogistic,  and  the  syllogism  is  merely  the  putting 
together  of  two  known  facts  in  such  fashion  as  to  make 
known  something  new  dependent  upon  these  established 
facts.  Out  of  our  experience  and  our  reading,  then,  we 
should  endeavor  to  evolve  something  new.  Composition 
should  be  a  placing  together,  accomplished  with  such 
carefully  ordered  forethought  as  to  produce  in  the  com- 
bination a  sort  of  creation. 

The  question  may  arise,  How  far  are  we  at  liberty  to 
appropriate  the  ideas  of  others  ?  We  may  read  books 
for  information  and  gather  material  to  reinforce  our 
ideas, —  the  more  the  better  ;  but  we  are  not  at  liberty 
to  take  the  matter  and  call  it  our  own.  What  we  read 
should  give  us  food  for  thought.  We  should  have  a 
plan  of  our  own,  and  make  our  borrowed  material  con- 
form to  this  plan.  We  must  compare  the  ideas  we 
gather  from  others  with  our  own  observation  and  experi- 
ence, and  deduce  our  own  interpretation,  thereby  color- 
ing the  work  with  our  own  personality.  What  we  take 
in  must  be  thoroughly  assimilated  before  we  give  it  out. 

13.  The  Subject.  —  Several  considerations  must  have 
weight  with  us  in  considering  what  we  shall  write  about. 
As  we -have  seen,  we  must  deal  with  matters  upon  which 
we  have  or  can  secure  information.  At  first  glance,  it 
seems  as  if  we  should  write  better  about  matters  con- 


THE    THEME.  19 

cerning  which  we  are  already  informed,  but  this  will  not 
always  be  true.  If  we  write  largely  or  altogether  from 
what  we  already  know,  we  shall  write  with  more  ease 
and  freedom,  with  stronger  assurance  of  conclusions 
that  have  become  convictions  ;  but  our  interest  in  a 
subject  will  be  less  infectious  if  it  has  become  a  little 
worn  for  us.  The  writer  as  well  as  the  reader  needs 
the  stimulus  of  novelty,  and  should  choose  subjects  that 
compel  him  to  do  some  new  thinking,  some  new  studying 
or  reading,  for  himself.  This  new  studying  or  reading, 
it  should  be  remembered,  is  not  to  be  reproduced  simply. 
The  more  we  do  of  it  the  better ;  but  the  material  that 
we  gather  must  be  digested,  reorganized,  and  made  new 
with  our  own  thought. 

Two  other  considerations  especially  enter  into  the 
choice  of  a  subject,  —  our  own  interest,  and  the  appre- 
ciative interest  we  may  hope  for  on  the  part  of  our 
readers.  Whether  our  interest  is  one  that  has  grown 
with  years,  or  one  that  we  have  just  brought  to  life  by 
recent  study,  it  must  be  a  real  present  interest.'  If  we 
have  no  interest  in  a  theme,  and  a  little  study  quickens 
no  interest  in  us,  we  should  discard  it  ;  for  we  shall  have 
nothing  to  say  that  is  worth  reading.  On  the  other 
hand,  study  of  a  subject  often  develops  an  interest  which 
we  had  not  thought  we  had  ;  and  before  rejecting  a  sub- 
ject that  does  not  appear  promising  we  should  first  make 
sure  that  we  cannot  look  for  such  a  kindling  of  interest. 

We  should  choose  our  subjects  with  some  reference 
to  our  readers.  Whatever  we  write  about  .should  be  a 


20  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

matter  of  present  interest  to  those  around  us,  or  capa- 
ble of  arousing  an  interest ;  otherwise  it  will  be  a  waste 
of  time  to  put  our  thoughts  on  paper.  "The  Pleasure 
of  Adversity,"  or  "  The  Necessity  of  Hope,"  would 
never  —  unless  in  the  hands  of  an  Emerson  —  attract 
readers  ;  for  the  subjects  are  so  old  and  hackneyed  that 
they  have  no  present  interest  for  readers,  and  the  ordi- 
nary writer  has  nothing  new  or  fresh  to  say  which  will 
awaken  an  interest.  Remember  then,  that,  in  addition 
to  our  own  interest  in  a  subject,  we  should  hope  to 
arouse  an  appreciative  interest  in  others. 

1 .  Sources  of  Subjects.  —  Fortunately  the  world  is  so 
full  of  things  that  interest  us  that  we  do  not  have  to 
repeat  other  men's  thoughts  in  order  to  have  something 
to  say.      Our  daily  experiences,  our  everchanging  inter- 
ests,  the   newspapers   and    magazines    that    crowd    our 
tables,   continually    suggest    new    topics    for    discussion 
and  stimulate  our  thinking.      Our  different  studies,  par- 
ticularly English  literature  and  history,  furnish  us  with 
many  excellent  subjects  for  themes.      Nothing  could  be 
more  helpful  to  the  pupil  or  more  interesting  to  read 
than  a  theme  based  on  some  one  of  Irving's  sketches 
or  on  one  of  the  Roger  de  Coverley  papers.     An  inci- 
dent   in    the    school     history,    such    as    "The    Roman 
Soldier"  or  "The  Army  of   the  Potomac"   would    be 
equally  interesting.     Whenever  a  pupil  finds  something 
in  his  studies  to  interest  him  and  to  stimulate  his  mind, 
he  can  feel  that  he  has  a  suitable  subject  for  a  theme. 

2.  Definite  Subjects.  —  In  general  we  should  choose 


THE   THEME.  21 

subjects  that  are  definite  and  specific,  rather  than  those 
that  are  abstract  and  general.  Subjects  of  the  latter 
sort,  while  seemingly  easy,  are  really  much  more  unsatis- 
factory and  difficult  of  treatment.  They  present  so 
many  lines  of  thought  that  the  mind  cannot  readily 
take  them  in  ;  they  require,  too,  a  wide  range  of  infor- 
mation and  an  exact  knowledge  of  the  facts  from  which 
generalizations  may  be  drawn.  It  is  almost  impossible 
to  add  anything  fresh  or  original  to  the  discussion  of 
such  subjects.  They,  therefore,  offer  more  difficulties 
to  the  writer,  and  have  less  interest  for  the  general 
reader.  "  Fiction  "  would  be  an  uninteresting  subject, 
or  at  least  a  subject  that  could  be  made  interesting  only 
by  one  who  had  read  widely  and  thought  much ;  it 
could  not  be  treated  properly  in  the  short  space  of  a 
theme  ;  but  George  Eliot's  greatest  novel  might  be  made 
the  subject  of  an  interesting  paper  by  one  whose  knowl- 
edge of  the  world  of  books  was  much  less  extended. 
Even  this  subject,  properly  treated,  would  be  much  too 
abstract  for  most  of  us.  A  book  is  rarely  a  fit  subject 
for  themes  to  be  written  by  high-school  pupils  ;  since 
they  have  not  the  requisite  critical  judgment  to  treat  it 
properly,  and  ordinarily  make  their  writing  on  such  a 
subject  mere  catalogues  of  the  facts  of  which  the  book 
makes  record. 

3.  Narrowing  the  Subject. — The  space  that  is  to  be 
given  to  a  subject  will  affect  somewhat  the  statement  of 
the  subject  and  title.  A  essay  upon  the  earth  might 
fill  a  volume,  and  leave  all  but  a  fraction  of  the  subject 


22  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

untouched.  If  by  some  additional  word  or  phrase  of 
limitation  the  subject  be  so  narrowed,  that  the  earth  is 
to  be  considered  simply  in  its  astronomical  relations  as 
a  member  of  the  solar  system,  much  less  can  be  written  ; 
and  if  the  subject  be  further  narrowed,  so  that  only  the 
size  of  the  earth  in  relation  to  that  of  other  members  of 
the  solar  system  is  to  be  considered,  there  will  be  still 
less  to  be  said.  Finally,  the  subject  may  be  so  nar- 
rowed that  the  theme  will  contain  no  more  than  a 
paragraph. 

As  we  observed  above,  general  subjects  do  not  ordi- 
narily offer  much  opportunity  for  the  writer.  Save  for 
the  experienced  author  who  has  a  mass  of  facts  at  his 
command,  and  is  able  to  employ  these  in  such  fashion 
as  to  make  his  generalization  almost  concrete,  sub- 
jects that  are  tangible,  subjects  upon  which  the  mind 
can  take  firm  hold,  are  best.  Certainly  we  should  be- 
gin our  composition  work  with  such  subjects,  so  training 
ourselves  to  habits  of  sure  mastery  of  whatever  we  have 
in  hand.  It  will  be  best,  then,  when  a  subject  suggests 
itself  to  us,  to  consider  carefully  whether  it  is  not  too 
general  and  vague,  whether  we  may  not  be  more  suc- 
cessful if  we  treat  but  one  of  the  subjects  which  it 
includes.  "  Manual  Training,"  for  instance,  would  be 
altogether  too  large  a  subject  for  an  ordinary  school 
theme.  It  may  include,  however,  a  number  of  subjects 
upon  which  we  could  write  acceptably.  Limiting  it  with 
respect  to  the  character  of  the  discussion  we  may  get 
the  "  Practical  Utility  of  Manual  Training,"  and  further 


THE    THEME.  23 

with  respect  to  place,  "The  Practical  Utility  of  Manual 
Training  in  High  Schools,"  and  with  respect  to  those 
concerned,  "  The  Practical  Utility  of  Manual  Training 
in  High  Schools  for  Poor  Boys." 

14.  Selection  of  Title.  —  We  must  distinguish  be- 
tween the  general  subject  and  the  distinctive  title. 
Evidently  the  last  subject  in  the  preceding  paragraph 
would  not  do  for  a  title.  It  is  too  diffuse  and  unat- 
tractive. The  title  must  be  compact  yet  comprehen- 
sive. It  must  tersely  suggest  all  that  we  are  writing 
about,  and  would  better  not  contain  more  than  four  or 
five  words.  If  the  title  suggests  itself  along  with  the 
prospective  subject  matter  and  the  manner  of  treat- 
ment, that  is  well ;  but  often  this  is  not  the  case,  and 
the  title  becomes  our  first  care.  It  should  generally  be 
determined  before  we  begin  to  write,  for  we  are  thereby 
better  able  to  preserve  the  unity  of  the  theme  and  to 
avoid  rambling.  Besides,  it  is  usually  easier  to  make 
the  theme  conform  to  the  title  than  the  title  to  the 
theme.  We  should  think  first  of  what  we  wish  to  say, 
—  subject,  point  of  view,  length  of  treatment,  etc.,  — 
and  govern  ourselves  accordingly. 

The  title  should  have  a  very  definite  relation  to  what 
it  introduces  ;  it  should  appeal  to  the  curiosity  of  the 
reader,  but  should  not  tell  too  much.  "  Prohibition  does 
not  Prohibit  "  is  very  faulty  as  a  title,  since  it  betrays  at 
once  the  partisanship  of  the  writer  ;  and  those  whom 
the  article  is  written  to  convince  will  look  no  further. 
"  Why  prohibition  does  not  prohibit  "  is  better,  since  it 


24  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

leaves  the  point  of  view  of  the  writer  uncertain.  The 
use  of  hackneyed  expressions  in  the  title  is  peculiarly 
open  to  objection,  since  it  gives  the  color  of  common- 
place to  the  whole  production.  "Tripping  the  Light 
Fantastic  Toe  "  we  know  to  be  merely  an  account  of  a 
dancing-party,  and  it  awakens  in  us  no  further  interest. 
A  title  should  be  brief  to  catch  the  attention  of  the 
reader,  and  clear,  that  he  may  see  quickly  the  character 
of  the  article.  "  Victorious  yet  Skunked,"  a  title  recently 
given  by  a  schoolboy  to  his  theme,  would  hardly  suggest 
that  the  boy  was  narrating  the  incidents  of  a  fox-hunt. 
A  title  should  attract  attention,  but  when  it  has  too 
obviously  been  chosen  for  that  purpose  the  impression 
upon  the  reader  is  unpleasant.  It  savors  of  affectation 
on  the  part  of  the  writer.  This  is  the  case  with  a 
great  many  of  the  titles  found  in  the  newspapers  and 
cheap  works  of  fiction  of  the  present  day,  the  object 
being,  no  doubt,  to  attract  readers  by  novel  or  startling- 
headlines.  Such  devices  should  be  avoided.  With  the 
help  of  a  proper  title,  however,  we  may  hope  to  get  the 
reader  interested  in  our  theme. 

EXERCISES. 

i.  Bring  to  the  class  five  subjects  which  you  have 
found  of  interest  to  you  in  the  newspapers  and  the  maga- 
zines you  have  recently  read.  Select  from  your  own  ob- 
servations five  subjects  suitable  for  themes.  Select  a 
similar  list  from  your  school  courses.  Choose  a  proper 
title  for  each  of  your  subjects.  Give  your  reasons  for 
thinking  each  title  appropriate. 


THE    THEME.  2$ 

2.  Which  of  the  following  subjects  would  be  of  interest 
to  you,  and  which  would  be  of  general  interest  ?  Which 
of  them  should  you  criticise  as  being  too  abstract  or 
general  ? 

1.  The  benefits  of  gardening.     14.  Culture. 

2.  The  pleasures  of   a  well-     15.  Coal-mining. 

informed  mind.  16.  The  rubber-tree. 

3.  Courage.  17.  General    Grant's    cam- 

4.  A  sunset  in  the  mountains.  paigns  in  the  Civil  War. 

5.  A  Turkish  man-of-war.  18.  Newspapers. 

6.  Butterflies.  19.  A  visit  to  Washington. 

7.  Astrology.-  20.  The  Boston  Subway. 

8.  A  cotton-field.  21.  A  day  in  camp. 

9.  Zoroaster.  22.  Yachting. 

10.  A  Hindoo  temple.  23.  Trout-fishing. 

11.  Oom  Paul  Kruger.  24.  The  pleasures  of  bicycle- 

12.  Manual  training.  riding. 

13.  "  The  Man  with  the  Hoe."  25.  Our  soldiers  in  Manila. 

/  .x5-  Narrow  four  of  the  following  themes  by  making  limi- 
i"'tations  of    place,  time,  kind,  either  one   or   all,  till  they 

are  so  far  reduced  that  each  may  be  treated  within  the 

compass  of  a  paragraph. 

1.  Mountains.  9.  Charities. 

2.  Clocks.  10.  Pain. 

3.  Flowers.  n.  Play. 

4.  Bicycles.  12.  Air. 

5.  Locomotives.  13.  Fire. 

6.  Cats.  14.  Geysers. 

7.  Opportunities.  15.  Seas. 

8.  Character. 

4.  Narrow  four  of  the  following  subjects  so  as  to  make 
them  interesting  to  four  different  classes  of  readers.  Nar- 
row at  least  two  of  the  subjects  so  that  the  theme  may 
be  interesting  to  readers  for  whom  the  subject  as  a  whole 
might  not  be  attractive.  In  each  case  state  to  what  par- 
ticular class  of  readers  the  theme  is  intended  to  appeal, 
and  be  prepared  to  say  why  it  should  have  interest  for 
readers  of  that  class. 


26  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


1.  Farming.  8.  The  Nile. 

2.  Printing.  9.  Our  Country. 

3.  Sewing.  10.  Niagara. 

4.  Moonlight.  n.  Nature. 

5.  Inventions.  12.  Base-ball. 

6.  The  post-office.  13.  The  Milky  Way. 

7.  Elections.  14.  The  Aztecs. 

5.  Narrow  five  of  the  following  subjects  until  you  think 
they  are  suitable  for  school  themes,  and  give  an  appro- 
priate title  to  each. 

1.  The  Mother  Country.  n.  The  Straits  of  Dover. 

2.  Art.  12.  The    War    between    the 

3.  Rivers.  English  and  the  Boers 

4.  The  Spanish  War.  in  South  Africa. 

5.  Literature.  13.  Electricity. 

6.  Magazines.  14.  Arbitration. 

7.  Watches.  15.  Immigration. 

8.  Country  Roads.  16.  Public  Parks. 

9.  Heroes.      .  17.  Politics. 

10.  Sunrise.  18.  Municipal  Government. 

6.  Look  over  the  newspapers  and  magazines  of  the 
,  and  select  five  titles  which  you  think  appropriate  to 
the  subjects  under  discussion.  What  have  you  to  say  on 
this  point  with  regard  to  the  following  titles  ? 

TITLE.  SUBJECT  IN  BRIEF. 

1.  New  York  Bites  the  Dust.  Describing  the  defeat  of 

the  New  York  base- 
ball club  in  a  game. 

2.  Lessons  in  Liberty.  An  account  of  the  prepa- 

rations for  the  visit  of 
Cuban  teachers  to  the 
United  States. 

3.  A  Patriot's  Mecca.  An  account  of  the  cele- 

bration of  Patriot's 
Day,  April  19,  at  Con- 
cord, Mass. 

4.  Her  Day  of  Battle.  An  account  of  the  same 

at  Lexington. 


THE    THEME. 


5.  Housing  the  Poor. 


6.  A  Garden  of  Mercy. 


7.  Forty  Years  of  British  Trade. 

8.  The  Battle  of  the  Centuries. 

9.  A  Ten  Years'  War. 

10.  Poor  People. 

11.  We  are  too  much  Governed. 


Experiments  in  securing 
model  dwelling-houses 
for  the  poor  of  London. 

A  plea  for  sending  the 
poor  from  the  crowded 
cities  to  the  farming- 
districts,  and  for  the 
establishment  of  train- 
ing-colonies. "Land 
Experiments,"  says  the 
author,  "  is  a  cold  title. 
To  me  they  (the  train- 
ing-colonies) appear  as 
Gardens  of  Mercy, 
where  the  gardener 
longs  to  make  as 
goodly  a  show  of  souls 
as  of  roses." 

A  history  of  the  develop- 
ment of  trade  in  Great 
Britain  during  the  last 
forty  years. 

A  discussion  whether  the 
year  1900  belongs  to 


the  nineteenth    or 
twentieth  century. 


the 


An  account  of  the  battle 
with  the  slums  in  New 
York  City. 

A  novel,  dealing  with  life 
in  the  tenement  district 
in  Chicago.  This  does 
not  mean  the  slums. 

"I  am  asked,"  says  the 
author,  "  to  express  my 
views  of  the  tendency 
on  the  part  of  the  Legis- 
latures of  the  various 
States  of  the  Union  in 
the  direction  of  multi- 
plying legislation." 


28 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


12.  The  Klondike  Stampede. 

13.  "  Never  Say  Die." 

14.  An  Actor's  Day  off. 

15.  Chocorua. 

1 6.  A  Large  Bass. 

17.  A  Steam  Carriage. 


A  history  of  the  Klon- 
dike region,  and  a  de- 
scription of  the  rush  of 
people  to  that  locality 
during  the  gold  fever 
of  1897-1898. 

A    school-boy's    account 
of  the  work  and  prac- 
tice of  the  school  boat- 
'  crew  on  the  river. 

The  experience  of  an 
actor  who  had  stopped 
over  a  day  at  Niagara 
Falls. 

A  description  of  Mt. 
Chocorua  by  a  writer 
who  spent  one  summer 
in  that  vicinity. 

A  school-boy's  account 
of  a  day's  bass-fishing 
in  Florida. 

A  description  of  an  auto- 
mobile  propelled  by 
steam. 


7-  Suggest   suitable  titles  for  the  following  newspaper 
paragraphs. 

1.  The   attorney-general   for    Kansas,  on   January    16,   at 
Topeka,  rendered  an  opinion  to  the  state  superintendent  of 
public   instruction,  holding  that  when  a  public  school  has 
been  suspended  by  order  of  the  board  of  trustees,  on  account 
of  the  presence  of  a  contagious  disease  in  the  community, 
teachers  are  entitled  to  full  pay  under  their  contracts  during 
such  suspension.  : 

2.  What  sneaks  and  snobs  we  are  getting  to  be  !     A  Cana- 
dian railroad  dignitary  is  written  of  by  an  American  news- 
paper as  "  having  once  filled  the  position  of  an  humble  ticket 
agent."     Mark  the  juxtaposition.     The  "  humble  "  is  attached 
to  the  man  more  than  to  the  position.     We  never  yet  found 
that  humility  was  required  in  that  occupation. 

3.  The  worst  of  the  whole  business  is,  not  so  much  the 
harm  that  a  single  play  can  do,  but  the  general  degradation 


THE   THEME.  29 

of  public  taste,  if  not  of  morals,  by  exaltations  of  brute 
reproductions  of  the  indecent  as  "  art."  Between  the  repre- 
sentations of  life  and  life  itself  there  must  always  be  a 
distinction. 

4.  For    three    consecutive    Congressional    elections    the 
methods  and   practices   of   that  district  have   been  investi- 
gated by  this  House,  and  in  both  of  the  preceding  instances 
this   body  has  set  its  seal  of   condemnation  upon   the  de- 
bauchery thereof. 

5.  The  flour  trust  has  collapsed,  from  the  same  cause  that 
sent  so  many  trusts  down,  over  capitalization.     As  it  was 
written  in  the  Register  many  months  ago,  the  people  who 
will  be  hurt  first  and  worst  by  the  trusts  will  be  those  who 
put  their  money  in  them. 

6.  Mamma  —  Tommy,   you   must  eat   every  bit  of  your 
soup.      How  many  little   boys  would  be  thankful  to   have 
only  half  of  that  big  bowlful  set  before  them. 

Tommy  —  So  would  I. 

7.  The  Dublin  city  council  had  an  exciting  session  over 
a  resolution   to   welcome    Queen  Victoria  formally^  in   her 
coming  visit.      It  was  carried   by  a  narrow  majority,   and 
with  groans  from  the  spectators. 

8.  During  the  past  week  there  have  been  increasing  signs 
of  a  rising  tide  of  war  sentiments  among  the  French  people 
directed  against  England,  and  it  is  an  open  secret  that  the 
army  and  navy  are  being  put  on  a  war  footing. 

9.  The  British  newspapers  very  generally  applaud  Salis- 
bury's rejection  of  the  peace  proposal. 

10.  In  both  Senate  and  House  bills  have  been  introduced 
giving  the  senior  major-general  of  the  army,  while  com- 
manding the  Urmy,  the  rank  of  lieutenant-general,  together 
with  the  emoluments  of  that  rank.  %- 


30  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER    II. 
THE  THEME   (continued}. 

15.  Material  for  the  Theme.  —  Before  the  work  of 
composition  is  begun,  material  for  the  theme  should  be 
gathered  and  considered  carefully.  Every  sentence 
should  be  planned  with  the  thought  of  the  conclusion 
for  which  the  whole  is  written.  A  great  genius  may 
dash  off  his  lines  without  premeditation,  trusting  to 
inspiration  for  the  working  out  of  a  well-rounded  design, 
but  the  majority  of  us  cannot  do  this.  In  general,  lack 
of  design  is  a  very  serious  hindrance  to  the  pleasure  as 
well  as  to  the  comprehension  of  the  reader.  We  should 
get  our  material,  and  have  it  arranged  in  our  minds? 
before  we  begin  to  write.  But  it  is  sometimes  difficult 
to  know  where  we  shall  get  this  material.  We  may 
have  our  subject,  even  our  title,  well  in  mind  ;  but  the 
next  step  is  not  always  an  easy  one.  Let  us  consider, 
then,  whence  our  material  is  to  come. 

The  great  source  of  material  is  our  own  experience 
and  observation.  Having  chosen  his  subject,  the  pupil 
should  keep  his  eyes  open  continually  for  hints  and  sug- 
gestions. He  will  be  surprised  to  find  how  many  things 
that  he  sees  or  hears  or  reads  have  a  bearing  on  what 
he  has  been  thinking  about.  If  at  frequent  intervals  he 


THE    THEME.  31 

brings  his  mind  back  to  It  the  subject  will  grow  in  his 
thought,  trains  of  mental  association  and  of  memory  will 
be  set  in  motion,  and  almost  unconsciously  he  will  come 
to  have  a  clearly  outlined  understanding  of  what  he 
wishes  to  say.  Of  course  not  everything  that  comes 
under  our  observation  is  available,  and  not  everything 
available  shows  its  true  character  at  a  glance  ;  we  may 
have  to  look  a  long  time  to  see  anything  that  has  not 
already  been  seen  and  reported  many  times.  The  success 
of  Dickens  was  undoubtedly  due  in  great  measure  to  the 
fact  that  he  had  been  a  reporter,  and  acquired  the  habit 
of  observing  minutely  the  manners,  movements,  and 
surroundings  of  the  characters  which  he  has  portrayed 
with  such  consummate  skill.  Read  Washington  Irving's 
description  of  Sleepy  Hollow,  and  you  see  at  once  that 
it  is  no  fancy  of  Irving's  imagination,  but  a  real  valley 
which  Irving  had  visited,  and  which  had  made  deep 
impression  upon  his  mind.  In  Nathaniel  Hawthorne's 
"  Note  Book  "  may  be  found  the  following  record,  show- 
ing how  he  was  continually  jotting  down  minute  observa- 
tions for  future  use  : 1 

61  October  25.  A  walk  yesterday  through  Dark  Lane 
and  home  through  the  village  of  Danvers.  Landscape 
now  wholly  autumnal.  Saw  an  elderly  man  laden  with 
two  dry,  yellow,  rustling  bundles  of  Indian  cornstalks,  a 
good  personification  of  Autumn.  Another  man  hoeing  up 
potatoes.  Rows  of  white  cabbages  lay  ripening.  Fields 
of  dry  Indian  corn.  The  grass  has  still  considerable 
greenness.  Wild-rose  bushes  devoid  of  leaves,  with  their 

1  Quoted  from  Newcomer's  "  Elements  of  Rhetoric." 


32  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

deep,  bright  red  seed-vessels.  Meeting-house  in  Danvers 
seen  at  a  distance,  with  the  sun  shining  through  the  win- 
dows of  its  belfry,"  and  so  on. 

Such  is  the  importance  of  close  observation  and  personal 
experience. 

We  may  find  material  also  in  the  observations  and 
experiences  of  others.  We  should  cultivate  the  habit  of 
consulting  books,  of  getting  something  besides  pleasure 
out  of  magazines  and  papers.  We  know  from  Macaulay's 
journal-  that  he  spent  eighteen  months  in  acquainting 
himself  with  the  reign  of  William  III.,  that  he  might 
be  able  to  write  his  History.  He  visited  Holland, 
Belgium,  Scotland,  .Ireland,  France  ;  he  ransacked  the 
Dutch  archives  and  the  French  archives  ;  he  turned  over 
thousands  of  pamphlets,  and  explored  the  British 
Museum  and  the  great  libraries  "of  England,  for  his 
material.  Go  into  the  Boston  Public  Library  any  day, 
and  you  will  see  men  from  all  parts  of  the  count rv 
poring  over  books  and  manuscripts  for  information  upon 
subjects  which  they  intend  to  discuss. 

Learn  to  use  indexes,  such  as  Poole's  "  Index 
to  Periodical  Literature,"  and  the  American  Library 
Association's  "  Index  to  General  Literature,"  that  you 
may  the  more  readily  find  out  what  has  been  written  on 
a  given  subject.  If  you  wish  to  know  about  Dr.  John- 
son, and  have  no  book  or  magazine  article  dealing  with 
him,  perhaps  the  index  to  a  life  of  Goldsmith  or  some 
other  contemporary  will  help  you.  A  chance  allusion 
to  the  subject  is  better  than  no  information  at  all ;  it 


THE    THEME.  33 

may  suggest  another  view  of  the  matter,  or  may  show 
that  your  researches  have  been  too  narrow  and  one- 
sided. We  should  guard  carefully  against  any  such 
fault.  Our  readers  will  hardly  appreciate  the  real  force 
of  our  conclusions,  and  the  grounds  for  them,  if  we  leave 
them  with  the  feeling  that  our  showing  is  not  a  fair 
one.  If  a  recent  paper  or  magazine  has  suggested  our 
subject,  we  have  to  guard  especially  against  the  danger 
of  one-sided  treatment.  If  we  are  writing  upon  "The 
United  States  and  the  Philippines,"  and  wish  for  facts 
in  support  of  our  opinions,  we  must  consult  the  more 
serious  magazines  and  reviews  instead  of  relying  upon 
the  doubtful  statements  of  partisan  newspapers. 

16.  Organizing  the  Theme.  —  Gathering  material  and 
gathering  an  abundance  of  it  is  the  first  step  in  prepara 
tion  for  our  writing.  We  shall  next  need  to  choose 
from  the  mass  of  things  which  we  have  found  those 
particularly  suited  to  our  purpose,  and  reject  the  rest. 
When  we  have  done  this  we  may  make  an  outline. 
Some  preliminary  outline  is  essential  to  the  writing  of 
a  good  theme.  From  it  the  theme  is  built  up.  This 
outline  may  consist  of  little  more  than  the  ideas  which 
we  have  acquired  in  the  way  of  reading  and  observation. 
We  may  simply  put  down  these  ideas,  and  then  arrange 
them  in  proper  sequence  and  under  proper  headings,  so 
as  to  secure  unity  and  symmetry  in  our  work.  In  this 
way  we  get  a  mental  grasp  of  our  subject.  Let  us 
suppose,  for  instance,  that  we  wish  to  describe  a  New 
England  village  that  we  have  visited.  With  note-book 


34  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

in    hand   we  put    down  our    impressions   somewhat    as 
follows  : 

THE    LITTLE    VILLAGE    OF    A. 

Arrived  at  the  little  railroad  station.  Saw  a  number  of 
curious  looking  people  gathered  there.  Strange  forms  of 
conveyance.  A  bright,  sunny  day.  A  beautiful  spot.  A 
river  flowing  through  the  valley.  Road  bordered  with 
trees.  Green  fields  stretching  away  in  the  distance. 
Fields  of  grain.  Gardens.  Farm-houses  here  and  there. 
Mountains  in  the  distance.  Approach  to  village.  Main 
•  streets.  Tall  elms.  One  or  two  stores.  Post-office. 
Church.  School.  A  hotel.  A  number  of  loafers  around. 
A  small  factory  on  the  river.  People  mostly  farmers, 
pleasant,  talkative,  always  busy.  Some  work  in  factory. 
Stayed  at  a  large  farm-house.  Numerous  walks.  Beauti- 
ful paths.  A  lake.  Falls.  Good  fishing.  Historical 
associations.  Traditions.  Feelings  wakened  by  the 
visit. 

We  have  written  down  our  notes  at  random,  as  they 
happened  to  come  to  us  ;  but  on  examination  we  shall 
see  that  we  can  improve  this  outline  by  omitting  some 
of  the  trivial  and  unimportant  notes,  and  by  grouping 
and  rearranging  what  remain.  Thereby  the  outline  will 
be  made  more  systematic,  and  the  theme  more  orderly 
and  symmetrical.  The  revised  outline  will  be  somewhat 
as  follows  : 

1.  Beginning,     i.  Arrival.     2.  Railroad  station.    3.  Peo- 
ple around.     4.   A  sunny  day.     5.   My  first  impressions. 

2.  Natural   features,      i.  A  river  flowing   through  the 
valley.       2.   Green  fields  stretching  away.      3.   Cultivated 
land.      4.    Large    tracts    of    woodland.      5.    A    lake.      6. 
Mountains  all  around  in  the  distance. 

3.  Artificial    features.       i.    Prosperous-looking    farms. 


THE    THEME.  35 

2.  Stores.      3,    A  country  church.       4.    A    small    district 
school.     5.    The  hotel.     6.   The  factory. 

4.  People,      i.   Farmers.     2.   Workmen  in  the   factory. 

3.  Character  of  the  people,  —  pleasant,  courteous,  busy. 
Peculiarities. 

5.  Places    of    interest.       i.    The    lake.       2.     Fishing, 
3.  The  falls.     4.    Beautiful  paths  through  the  woods. 

6.  Historical  associations,      i.  Indians.     2.    A  Revolu- 
tionary. War  incident.     3.  A  tradition. 

7.  Conclusion.     Feelings  awakened  by  my  visit. 

Of   course   the    outline   may  be    still    further  systema- 
tized if  desired. 

17.  Development  of  the  Theme.  —  When  we  have  de- 
cided on  our  subject  and  our  title,  secured  our  material, 
and  thought  out  in  a  general  way  our  conclusions,  we 
have  still  to  consider  various  points  in  connection  with 
the  theme,  such  as  how  to  begin,  the  order  and  the  length 
of  treatment,  the  proportion  of  parts,  and  how  to  end  it. 
Most  of  these  considerations  can  be  answered  as  we 
acquire  experience  in  writing,  but  a  few  of  the  more 
elementary  matters  may  be  treated  here. 

i.  The  Beginning.  —  How  to  begin  is  one  of  the 
most  perplexing  questions  that  confront  the  pupil  in  his 
theme  writing.  He  may  have  his  material  well  in  mind, 
but  he  cannot  think  of  a  good  way  to  begin  ;  everything 
seems  awkward  or  abrupt.  Whence  shall  come  the  first 
words  ?  They  must  develop  from  something  in  the 
mind  of  the  reader,  and  lead  to  what  is  to  come.  When 
we  once  get  started  it  is  easy  to  go  on,  for  one  thing 
suggests  another.  But  how  shall  we  start  ?  Let  us 
consider  for  a  moment  what  purpose  our  beginning  is  to 


36  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

serve,  Plainly  its  first  purpose  is  to  get  the  reader's 
attention  ;  then  it  must  interest  him,  and  create  a  favor- 
able impression  in  his  mind  ;  and  lastly  it  must  give  him 
to  understand  what  we  intend  to  write  about.  We  should, 
then,  begin  with  something  fresh  and  interesting ;  and 
this  should  prepare  the  way  for  a  brief  statement  of  the 
subject.  Sometimes  a  short  anecdote  or  an  apt  quota- 
tion will  answer  the  purpose  ;  again,  we  may  begin  with 
some  brief  assertion  that  will  strike  the  reader  with 
surprise  or  pleasure,  or  arouse  his  curiosity.  The  use 
of  the  first  personal  pronoun  is  often  effective,  as  it  in- 
vites familiarity  and  confidence.  On  simple  topics  we 
may  begin  a  theme  as  we  should  begin  a  conversation 
with  a  friend.  If  we  have  spent  an  enjoyable  day  at  the 
seashore,  and  wish  to  tell  a  friend  about  it,  we  do  not 
hesitate  for  a  way  to  begin.  We  say  naturally,  "  I  spent 
a  most  delightful  day  at  the  seashore  yesterday ;  "  and 
then  we  proceed  to  tell  him  all  the  particulars.  We  may 
do  the  same  in  our  writing,  although,  of  course,  in  a 
somewhat  more  formal  way.  Look  over  Irving' s  "Sketch- 
Book,"  or  some  similar  work,  and  note  how  the  author 
begins  his  different  sketches.  In  a  recent  magazine 
article  on  "  Railroading  as  a  Profession,"  the  author 
begins  as  follows  : 

"  Ever  since  the  Civil  War,  railroading  as  a  career  has 
probably  been  more  attractive  to  the  bold  and  enterpris- 
ing youth  of  America  than  any  other  occupation." 

An  article   in   the  "Atlantic  Monthly,"  entitled  "A 
Girl  of  Sixteen  at  Brook  Farm,"  begins  thus : 


THE    THEME.  37 

"  Of  all  the  -memorable  company  whom  I  found  seated 
at  the  tea  table  when  I  arrived  at  Brook  Farm,  a  few 
weeks  after  its  opening,  not  one  is  now  alive." 

In  general,  the  pupil  will  find  little  difficulty  in  begin- 
ning, if  he  keeps  in  mind  what  he  wishes  to  accomplish, 
and  does  it  as  briefly  and  simply  as  is  consistent  with 
what  he  has  to  say. 

2.  The  Ending.  —  Somewhat  less  perplexing  is  the 
question,  how  to  end  the  theme.  Every  teacher  has 
doubtless  listened  to  the  despairing  cry  of  the  pupil 
who  has  written  all  he  has  to  say  upon  his  subject,  but 
cannot  think  of  a  suitable  way  to  end  his  theme ;  there 
is  an  indefinite  something  in  his  mind  which  he  would 
like  to  say  to  bring  his  work  to  a  fitting  close,  but  he 
cannot  frame  it  in  words.  As  in  the  case  of  the  begin- 
ning, the  difficulty  will  be  easily  solved  if  the  pupil  will 
keep  in  mind  what  he  wishes  to  accomplish  in  the  end- 
ing. If  we  were  to  analyze  the  indefinite  something 
in  the  pupil's  thought,  we  should  probably  find  that 
it  is  a  desire  to  impress  more  firmly  on  the  reader  the 
important  points  that  have  been  made,  and  to  round 
out  gracefully  his  theme,  so  as  to  produce  a  finished 
whole.  This  is  the  purpose  of  an  ending ;  and  this  pur- 
pose can  be  accomplished  best  by  a  brief  summary  of  the 
several  points,  which  will  present  them  in  one  view  to 
the  mind  of  the  reader.  If  the  theme  is  a  simple  nar- 
rative, a  simple,  happy  turn  of  expression,  when  interest 
in  the  subject  is  closed,  will  suffice  for'  an  ending.  (In- 
troduction and  Conclusion  will  be  treated  more  fully  in 
Part  III.) 


38  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

3.  TJie   Body   of  the    Writing.  —  Having    now    out- 
lined our  plan  of  work,  it  only  remains  for  us  to  develop 
the  topics  with  the  material  at  our  command';  that  is, 
to  write   out  a  complete  and  connected  draft.      In  our 
early  writing  this  may  need  a  great  deal  of  revision,  but 
as  soon  as  possible  we   should  train  ourselves  to  make 
the  first  draft  as  nearly  what  we  would  have  it  as  possi- 
ble.     In  particular  we  must  be  careful  to  make  the  first 
writing  of  the  desired  length  and  of  the  proper  propor- 
tions.     Once  written  the  form  of  our  composition  is  in  a 
degree  fixed,  and  later  revision  will  not  wholly  correct 
faults. 

4.  TJie  Theme,  an  Organic  Whole.     We  are  now  in  a 
position  to  see  that  a  theme  is  not  a  mere  collection  of 
material  on  a  given  subject,   but   an  organized  whole, 
made  up  of  parts,  having  a  close  relation  to  one  another, 
being  mutually  dependent  on  one  another,  and  arranged 
in  logical  sequence.     The  whole  theme,  in  fact,  is  one 
in  thought  and  purpose,  a  unit,  made  up  of  smaller  units, 
and  these,  in  turn,  of  smaller  units,  which  are  developed 
on  the  same  general  lines,  and  in  turn  contribute  to  the 
unity  and  symmetry  of  the  whole. 

EXERCISES. 

i.    Let  the  pupils  study  the  following  beginnings   taken 
from  some  of  the  magazines  of  the  day,  and  say  if  they  con- 
r      form  to  his  ideas  of  a  good  beginning,  if  they  are  attractive, 
if  they  serve  their  purpose,  etc. 

i,   TITLE:  "The  Little  Tricks  of  Smuggling." 

Beginning:  "  Successful  smuggling  at  the  port  of  New 
York  may  be  classed  as  one  of  the  polite  forms  of 
crime." 


THE    THEME.  39 

2,  TITLE  :  "  The  Respectable  Wolf." 

Beginning:  " '  There  is  nothing  good  in  the  wolf.  He  has 
a  base  look,  a  savage  aspect,  a  terrible  voice,  an  in- 
supportable smell,  a  nature  brutal  and  ferocious,  a  body 
so  foul  that  no  animal  or  reptile  will  touch  it.'  So  says 
Buff  on,  in  a  characterization  well  nigh  as  savage  as  the 
nature  of  the  beast  characterized." 

.     3.  TITLE:  "The  Cuckoo  Clock."    A  Story. 

Beginning:  "No  one,  not  even  his  wife,  could  deny  that 
Mr.  Bates  was  the  meekest  of  men.  All  his  married 

rlife  he  had  submitted  to  the  superiority  of  his  wife,  and 
when  his  daughters  grew. up,  to  CffellS  aliJo  —  asuperior- 
ity  which  he  invariably  acknowledged." 

4.  TITLE  :  "  The  Place  of  French  Literature." 

V    '  • 

Beginning:  "The  preeminence  of  French  literature  over 
its  rivals  has  been  complacently  taken  for  granted  by 
most  Frenchmen." 

5.  TITLE  :  "  The  Unofficial  Government  of  Cities." 
Beginning:    "There   is   probably   no   subject    to    which, 

during  the  last  few  years^}  the  attention  of  public- 
spirited  Americans  has  been  more  carefully  directed- 
than  to  that  of  municipal  government." 

£^*^zr  Let  the  pupil  look  over  the  periodicals  at  hand, 
note  the  beginnings  and  the  endings  of  some  of  the  articles, 
and  bring  to  the  class  two  of  each  which  especially  please 
him.  Let  him  tell  what  he  sees  in  them  that  makes  them 
suitable  for  their  purpose. 

NOTE.  —  The  teacher  should  have  a  number  of  the  popular 
magazines  and  periodicals  in  the  class-room  for  distribution 
among  the  pupils. 

3.  Let  the  pupil  read  one  or  two  of  the  lighter  articles 
in  the  magazines,  note  down  the  important  points,  and 
make  a  topical  outline  for  each  article.     Irving's  "  Sketch- 
Book  "  furnishes  excellent  material  for  such  an  exercise. 

4.  From  the   list  of  books   which  you  have  recently 
read,  either  in  or  out  of  school,  bring  to  the  class  five 
subjects  upon  any  one  of  which  you  could  write  a  theme. 
Look  over  the  daily  newspapers  carefully,  and  from  the 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


topics    under  discussion  select    five  which    seem   to  you 
suitable  for  themes. 

5.  Look  up  material  on  three  of  the  following  subjects, 
using  an  encyclopedia  only  as  a  last  resort ;  bring  in  your 
notes  on  paper,  and  tell  the  source  of  each  jotting. 


The  Invention  of  the 
Steam  Engine. 

David  Harum  and  Mrs. 
Cullom  mDavid  Harum. 

The  Cape  to  Cairo  Rail- 
road. 

The  Story  of  Chevalier 
Bayard. 

Electric  Railroads. 

The  Story  of  Orpheus. 

A  Cyclone  at  Sea. 

The  Boston  Library. 


9.  The  City  of  Manila. 

10.  The  Gulf  Stream. 

11.  The   Government  of   the 

Boers. 

12.  The    Movements    of    the 

Glaciers. 

13.  The  Making  of  Pottery. 

14.  The    Colony    of     Porto 

Rico. 

15.  General  Gordon  in  Egypt. 

16.  The  Coal    Supply  of  the 

World. 


6.  Make  notes  about  something  which  particularly  in- 
terests you,  if  possible  giving  the  results  of  your  own  ex- 
perience and  observation,  for  instance,  the  use  of  the 
camera.  Develop  a  theme  from  the  notes  you  have 
made. 

7.  Which  of  the  following  subjects,  as  it  seems  to  you, 
would  require  a  treatment  of  no  more  than  two  hundred 
words  ?  Which,  five  hundred  ?  Which  would  require 
more  ?  Justify  your  decision  in  each  case. 


1.  Military    Drill    in    Public 

Schools. 

2.  A  Day's  Outing  on  the  Bi- 

cycle. 

3.  The  Burning  of  a  House. 

4.  A  Game  of  Baseball. 

5.  Duck-Shooting. 

6.  A  School  Incident. 

7.  A  Native  Flower. 

8.  The  Boston  Subway. 

9.  Rapid    Transit    in   Great 

Cities. 

10.  The  Pleasures  of  Bicycle- 
Riding. 


11.  Yachting. 

12.  A  Home  Phonograph. 

13.  An  Electric-Car  Ride. 

14.  My  Native  Town. 

15.  A  Bachelor's  Room. 

16.  The  Appearance  of  Icha- 

bod  Crane. 

17.  A  Native  Tree. 

18.  The  Evils  of  Immigration. 

19.  The  Advantages  of  an  Ed- 

ucation. 

20.  A  Fishing-Trip. 

21.  A    Ramble    through     the 

Parks. 


THE    THEME. 


22.  A    Description    of   the 

Shakespeare  House. 

23.  A  Rainy  Day. 

24.  A  Haunted  House. 

25.  Stamp-Collecting. 

26.  Maple-Sugar  Making. 

27.  The  Books  we  Read. 

28.  The    Development    of 

School  Athletics. 

29.  The  Disastrous  Effects  of 

War  at  the  Present  Day. 

30.  ImprovementsinFirearms. 

31.  Boston,  a  Literary  Center. 

32.  The  Advantages  to  a  Town 

of  a  Good  Library. 

33.  A  Knowing  Cat. 

34.  An  Intelligent  Dog. 

35.  A  Yachting  Incident. 

36.  Rip  Van  Winkle's  Twenty 

Years'  Sleep. 

37.  General      Grant's      Cam- 

paigns. 

38.  Sights  from  my  Window. 

39.  A  Good  Dinner. 

40.  The  Paris  Exposition. 

41.  A  Day  at  the  County  Fair. 

42.  Improvements  in  Locomo- 

tion. 

43.  The  Automobile. 

44.  How  to  Sail  a  Boat. 

\  45.  The  Choice  of  an  Occupa- 
tion. 

46.  The  Coming  Baseball  Sea- 

son. 

47.  A  Fox  Hunt. 

48.  The  Woodpecker. 

49.  The  Use  of  the  Flashlight 

in  Photography. 

8.  Look  over  carefully  some  of  the  compositions  given 
in  the  appendix,  and  comment  on  the  choice  of  material, 
plan,  beginning,  ending,  etc. 


50.  The  Life  of  an  Actor. 

51.  How    to    Raise  Strawber- 

ries. 

52.  Should     Capital     Punish- 

ment be  Abolished  ? 

53.  A  Week  on  a  Pilot  Boat. 

54.  The  Printing  of  a  News- 

paper. 

55.  The  Coming  of  Spring. 

56.  The  Department  Stores. 

57.  At  the  Lunch  Counter. 

58.  The  Influence  of  the  Mod- 

ern Newspaper. 

59.  Gathering  Wild  Flowers. 

60.  An  Eccentric  Character. 
-61.  An   American    Soldier  in 

the  Philippines. 

62.  Fishing  through  the  Ice. 

63.  Home  Life  of  the  Boers. 

64.  The  Art  of  Trout-Fishing. 

65.  Mt.  Chocorua. 

66.  The  Legend  of   the  Holy 

Grail. 

67.  A  Beautiful  Sunrise. 

68.  An   Autumn    Day   in   the 

Country. 

69.  The  Old-fashioned  Stage- 

coach. 

70.  The  Justice  of  Strikes. 

71.  A  Model  Farm. 

72.  A  Walk  through  a  Shoe- 

Factory. 

73.  Good  Roads. 

74.  The  Passing  of  the  Ameri- 

can Indian. 

75.  A  Thunder  Shower. 


42  COMPOSITION  AMD  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE  PARAGRAPH. 

18.  What  the  Paragraph  Is.  —  If  we  look  at  the 
printed  page  of  any  book  we  notice  that  usually  it  is  not 
solid,  but  is  broken  once  or  twice  into  what  we  call 
paragraphs.  These  paragraphs  are  not  arbitrary  devices 
adopted  to  catch  the  reader's  eye.  They  have  a  much 
greater  significance.  Let  us  see,  then,  what  the  para- 
graph is,  and  why  the  printed  page  should  be  broken 
by  paragraph  divisions.  If  we  turn  for  a  moment  to  the 
two  outlines  of  The  Little  Village  of  A,  in  the  preceding 
chapter,  we  see  that  the  second  outline  differs  from  the 
first  in  this  respect,  that  certain  ideas  that  were  related 
to  one  another  have  been  grouped  under  heads  or  topics, 
and  that  each  topic  is  expressive  of  the  ideas  in  its 
group.  So  our  thoughts  upon  any  matter,  if  developed 
at  any  length,  break  up  naturally  into  groups  of  kindred 
ideas.  If  they  do  not  our  thinking  is  not  clear-cut  and 
logical.  These  groups  seem  to  be  natural  divisions  of 
the  subject.1  Now,  if  the  ideas  of  the  several  groups 
be  developed  into  sentences,  each  sentence-group  will 
constitute  a  paragraph.  I  We  may  define  a  paragraph, 
then,  as  a  group  of  sentences  in  which  a  single  topic  is 
developed.  J 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  43 

Let  us  take  some  theme,  and  see  how  the  ideas  which 
we  are  to  present  in  it  group  themselves.  We  will 
describe  an  old  mill,  and  make  such  arrangement  of  the 
details  as  will  form  fitting  paragraphs.  Arranging  these 
.details  as  they  suggest  themselves  to  us,  without  regard 
to  order  or  grouping,  we  will  afterwards  see  how  they 
are  related  to  each  other,  and  group  them  for  paragraphs 
according  to  these  relations. 

i.  The  mill-wheel.  2.  The  belts  and  whirring  wheels. 
3.  The  dam.  4.  The  mill  itself.  5.  Shape  of  the  mill. 
6.  The  mill-pond.  7.  The  dusty  miller.  8.  Size  of  the 
mill.  9.  The  wagons  of  the  farmers  bringing  grain.  10. 
Situation  of  the  mill.  IT.  The  background  of  trees  and 
hills. 

Glancing  over  these  items,  we  see  at  once  that  if  the 
subject  should  be  treated  in  the  order  in  which  the  de- 
tails are  here  given  the  description  would  be  broken  and 
incoherent,  and  the  whole  impression  would  be  indis- 
tinct. Attempting  to  bring  together  those  things  which 
have  some  relation,  we  may  unite  them  in  paragraphs  in 
some  such  fashion  as  follows  : 

First  paragraph  to  include  10,  n,  and  9. 
^Second      "  "         "          6,    3,  and  i. 

Third         "  "        "          4,    5,  and  8. 

Fourth       "  "         "  7,  and  2. 

Each  paragraph  now  includes  items  which  we  can 
hold  together  mentally,  and  forms  a  picture  which  is,  for 
our  purposes,  complete.  We  shall  not  find  it  easy  to 
think  in  groups  of  related  ideas  at  first ;  but  by  being 
careful  continually  to  have  the  purpose  of  each  para- 


44  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

graph  thought  out  before  we  begin  writing  upon  it,  we 
shall  come  to  divide  our  subjects  naturally  into  para- 
graphs. If  that  division  is  not  made  in  the  first  writing, 
it  will  be  found  difficult  or  impossible  to  make  it  after- 
wards without  rearrangement  and  re-writing.  That  the 
reader  may  not  pass  over  the  break  from  paragraph  to 
paragraph  the  first  line  of  each  should  be  indented  an 
inch  more  than  the  other  lines.  On  the  printed  page  or 
in  typewritten  manuscript  the  indentation  is  less,  be- 
cause the  uniformity  of  print  makes  a  slight  indentation 
sufficiently  noticeable. 

19.     The   Importance   of   Paragraphs From    what 

has  been  said  in  the  preceding  section,  we  see  that  a 
paragraph  is  a  natural  and  necessary  division  of  the  sub- 
ject, containing  a  complete  discussion  of  a  particular 
topic,  and  that  the  several  paragraphs  enable  the  writer 
to  develop  his  theme  logically.  They  are  quite  as  sig- 
nificant to  the  reader.  They  show  him  the  divisions 
of  the  subject  which  the  writer  wishes  to  make,  and 
each  conveys  a  sense  of  something  complete.  We 
see  further  that  the  paragraph  has  a  double  relation. 
It  is  a  division  of  a  larger  topic,  a  dependent  member 
of  the  whole  composition,  logically  connected  with  the 
other  members  ;  and  it  is  a  complete  whole  in  itself,  a 
miniature  composition,  in  which  the  several  sentences 
are  linked  together,  each  sentence  fulfilling  the  function 
apportioned  to  it.  It  is  the  latter  relation  with  which 
we  are  now  concerned.  Let  us,  then,  consider  a  para- 
graph for  a  moment,  and  see  how  the  sentences  com- 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  45 

posing  it  are  linked  together  by  a  natural  relation  of 
one  sentence  to  another  and  to  the  whole. 

i.  Once  on  the  brink  of  the  crater,  we  obtained  a  per- 
fect view  of  this  wonderful  cavity  in  the  mountain  side. 
2.  It  is  one  of  the  main  features  of  the  southwestern 
face  of  St.  Elias.  3.  It  begins  on  the  right  in  the  splen- 
did jagged  arete  leading  up  to  a  peak,  which  from  another 
point  appears  as  a  spur  of  the  mountain.  4.  At  the  foot 
of  this  peak  begins  the  upper  rim  of  the  crater,  which 
descends  gradually  to  the  left  in  the  shape  of  a  spiral 
curve.  5.  In  its  entire  length  it  is  frosted  with  a  layer 
of  snow  over  fifty  feet  thick;  the  effect  of  this  is  very 
striking.  6.  The  walls  of  the  crater  are  composed  of 
steep,  bare  rock,  the  surface  of  which  is  furrowed  and 
stratified  in  a  most  wonderful  manner.  7.  The  interior  is 
filled  with  snow ;  its  outlet  is  to  the  westward,  where  it 
feeds  a  large  glacier.  8.  There  is  good  reason  to  believe 
that  this  amphitheater  is  of  volcanic  origin.  9.  Several 
specimens  of  rock  which  were  brought  down  seem  to  sup- 
port this  theory,  while  later  in  the  day  a  cone  was  passed 
resembling  in  shape  and  general  appearance  those  seen  in 
the  crater  of  Kilauea,  on  the  island  of  Hawaii. 

From  sentence  I  to  sentence  7  inclusive  the  para- 
graph is  concerned  with  the  description  of  the  crater, 
each  sentence  adding  definiteness  to  the  picture,  and 
having  a  close  connection  with  the  sentence  preceding 
it.  Sentences  8  and  9,  dealing  with  the  formation, 
could  come  only  after  the  description,  since  it  is  the 
appearance  of  the  crater  that  leads  to  this  as  a  conclu- 
sion. There  are  but  these  two  divisions  of  thought  in 
the  paragraph,  which  may  be  outlined  as  follows :  — 


46  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  Crater. 

1 .  Description. 

a.  Position. 

b.  The  snow. 

c.  The  walls. 

d.  Outline. 

2.  Formation. 

a.  Probably  volcanic. 

b.  Character  of  the  rock. 

Observe  that  the  paragraph  is  a  complete  whole,  the 
descriptions  and  the  conclusions  as  to  the  formation  of 
the  crater  being  but  different  phases  of  the  mental 
effect  of  the  sight  of  the  crater.  This  should  be  true 
of  every  paragraph.  It  is  normally  the  unit  of  thought 
which  first  presents  itself  to  the  mind  of  the  writer  as 
he  mentally  outlines  a  composition  before  putting  pen 
to  paper.  Certain  things  must  be  said  before  the  reader 
is  prepared  for  certain  other  things  ;  and  these  various 
matters  should  arrange  themselves  in  the  mind  of  the 
writer  in  a  definite  order,  each  separate  phase  of  the 
subject  as  it  is  to  be  treated  forming  a  paragraph,  a  unit 
in  itself.  A  composition  in  which  each  paragraph  is 
complete  and  contains  nothing  extraneous  in  thought, 
mood,  or  manner,  gives  to  the  reader  the  sense  of  logi- 
cal, clear-cut,  orderly  arrangement  which  is  essential  to 
his  satisfaction  and  interest. 

20.  The  Length  of  Paragraphs The  length  of  the 

paragraph  must  be  determined  primarily  by  the  amount 
of  detail  that  goes  to  form  the  one  connected  whole. 
A  paragraph  may  consist  of  but  one  sentence,  and  how 
long  it  may  be  without  becoming  disjointed  and  awk- 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  tf 

ward  in  effect  the  writer  must  determine  in  each  indi- 
vidual case  ;  but,  in  general,  paragraphs  extending  over 
several  pages  are  too  long.  When  the  subject  is  a  com- 
plex one,  dealing  with  abstract  thought  or  with  historical 
or  scientific  generalizations,  the  groups  of  related  ideas 
may  necessarily  be  large  ;  but,  while  this  will  increase 
the  difficulty  of  making  distinctions  between  them,  such 
distinctions  must  be  made  with  greater  care.  If  the 
completed  composition  is  to  maintain  the  same  tone 
throughout,  the  paragraphs  should  not  vary  greatly  in 
length.  In  rapid  narration  the  paragraphs  will  gener- 
ally be  short,  since  the  story  does  not  dwell  long  upon 
the  separate  incidents.  In  effect,  then,  long  paragraphs 
have  weight  and  dignity  when  the  subject  matter  com- 
posing them  is  properly  connected  in  thought,  and  short 
paragraphs  have  movement  and  vivacity.  Occasionally, 
for  the  sake  of  emphasis,  sentences  that  are  connected 
in  thought,  and  might  form  one  paragraph,  are  broken 
up  into  several  paragraphs.  So  it  is  in  the  following, 
in  which  both  sentences  beginning  "  Lady  Standish  " 
are  put  in  paragraphs  by  themselves  for  emphasis. 

There  was  the  bishop,  the  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells  1 
That  reverend  prelate  had  shown  her  much  kindness  and 
attention.  He  would  know  how  to  interfere  in  such  a 
crisis.  He  was  a  man  of  authority.  Between  them  could 
they  not  force  the  peace  at  Hammer's  Fields,  and  could 
not  Sir  Jasper  be  saved  in  spite  of  himself,  were  it  by  de- 
livering him  into  the  hands  of  the  law  ? 

Lady  Standish  flew  into  her  room  and  called  the  sniff- 
ing Megrim. 

"  Paper  and  ink,"  cried  she,  "  and  get  you  ready  to  run 
on  a  message.  'Tis  a  matter  of  life  and  death." 


48  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

"  My  Lady,"  said  Megrim,  primly,  "  I  will  serve  your 
Ladyship  in  all  things  that  are  right ;  but  I  hope  I  know 
my  duty  to  my  Creator ;  and  stoop  to  connive  at  irregular- 
ities, my  Lady,  I  won't  and  never  will."  She  had  been 
ready  to  condemn  her  master  overnight,  but  the  talk  in 
the  servants'  hall  had,  as  she  had  expressed  it,  "  opened 
her  eyes."  And  what  woman  is  not  ready  to  judge  her 
sister  woman  —  above  all,  what  maid  to  condemn  her 
mistress  ? 

Lady  Standish  stared. 

"  What  means  this  ?  "  said  she.  "  You  shall  do  as  I 
bid  you,  Mistress  Megrim.  How  dare  you !  "  cried  Lady 
Standish,  with  a  sudden  flash  of  comprehension.  "  Why, 
woman,  my  letter  is  to  the  bishop !  " 

"  Oh,"  quoth  Mistress  Megrim,  still  with  reserve,  yet 
condescending  to  approval,  "  that  is  another  matter.  Shall 
I,"  she  sniffed,  "be  stricter  than  becomes  a  Christian? 
Shall  I  refuse  aid  to  the  bruised  sinner  or  to  the  smok- 
ing lamp  whose  conscience  is  awakened  ?  May  his  Lord- 
ship be  a  tower  of  strength  to  your  Ladyship  along  the 
rocky  paths  of  penitence  —  amen  !  "* 

Direct  quotations  are  usually  put  in  paragraphs  by 
themselves,  though  sometimes  the  quotation  is  so  much 
a  part  of  the  context  that  it  is  included  with  it.  In  the 
following  observe  that  the  first  sentence  in  paragraph  2 
implies  what  the  quotation  following  it  expresses  more 
definitely,  and  the  two  are  therefore  too  closely  connected 
to  be  put  in  separate  paragraphs.  The  first  sentence 
of  paragraph  3  bears  the  same  relation  to  the  quotations 
following  it,  and  they  are  therefore  paragraphed  to- 
gether. 

"  And   you,"    he    said,    "  you    pretended   because    you 

thought  it  was  best  for  me." 

l  "  The  Bath  Comedy,"  by  Egerton  Castle. 


THE   PARAGRAPH.  49 

She  nodded.  "  And  we  saw  through  each  other  all  the 
time,"  she  said. 

"  Grizel,  has  it  passed  away  altogether  now  ?  "  Her 
grip  upon  his  hand  did  not  tighten  in  the  least.  "  Yes," 
she  could  say  honestly,  "  it  has  altogether  passed  away." 

"  And  you  have  no  fear  ?  " 

"  No,  none."  t 

It  was  his  great  reward  for  all  that  he  had  done  for 
Grizel. 

"  I  know  what  you  are  thinking  of,"  she  said,  when  he 
did  not  speak.  "You  are  thinking  of  the  haunted  little 
girl  you  rescued  seven  years  ago."1 

21.  The  Topic-Sentence We  have  defined  a  para- 
graph as  a  group  of  sentences  in  which  a  single  topic  is 
developed.  This  topic  is  usually  announced  in  some  one 
or  two  sentences  which  are  called  topic-sentences.  These 
topic-sentences  may  be  considered  as  having  two  specific 
uses  :  they  make  known  to  the  reader  the  subject-matter 
of  the  paragraph,  and  they  hold  the  writer  to  the  discus- 
sion of  the  matter  with  which  the  paragraph  is  concerned. 
A  topic-sentence  is  usually,  though  not  necessarily,  short, 
and  may  come  anywhere  in  the  paragraph,  though  ordi- 
narily it  occurs  at  the  beginning.  When  there  are  two 
topic-sentences  they  are  rarely  separated  ;  but  if  they 
are,  one  will  usually  be  found  at  the  beginning  and  the 
other  at  the  end  of  the  paragraph.  Sometimes  there  is 
no  clear  topic-sentence,  especially  in  narrative  and  de- 
scriptive writing,  in  which  case  the  first  sentence  will 
give  a  clew  to  what  follows,  or  the  topic  must  be  in- 
ferred from  all  the  sentences.  The  use  of  the  topic- 
sentence  may  be  seen  in  the  following  paragraphs. 

1  "Tommy  and  Grizel,"  by  J.  M.  Barrie,  in  Scribbler's  Magazine. 


$0  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Study  carefully  its  relation  to  the  paragraph,  and  be 
prepared  to  say  whether  or  not  these  paragraphs  show 
any  digression  from  their  themes  as  announced  in  the 
topic-sentences,  pointing  out  such  digression,  if  any. 

To  be  strong-backed  and  neat-bound  is  the  desideratum  of 
a  volume.  Magnificence  comes  after.  This,  when  it  can  be 
afforded,  is  not  to  be  lavished  upon  all  kinds  of  books  in- 
discriminately. I  would  not  dress  a  set  of  Magazines,  for 
instance,  in  full  suit.  The  dishabille  or  half-binding  (with 
russia  backs  ever)  is  our  costume.  A  Shakespeare,  or 
a  Milton  (unless  the  first  editions),  it  were  mere  foppery 
to  trick  out  in  gay  apparel.  The  possession  of  them  con- 
fers no  distinction.  The  exterior  of  them  (the  things 
themselves  being  so  common),  strange  to  say,  raises  no 
sweet  emotions,  no  tickling  sense  of  property  in  the 
owner.  Thomson's  Seasons,  again,  looks  best,  (I  main- 
tain it)  a  little  torn  and  dog's-eared.  How  beautiful  to 
a  genuine  lover  of  reading  are  the  sullied  leaves,  and 
worn-out  appearance,  nay  the  very  odor  (beyond  russia), 
if  we  would  not  forget  kind  feelings  in  fastidiousness,  of 
an  old  "  Circulating  Library,"  Tom  Jones,  or  Vicar  of 
Wakefield  !  How  they  speak  of  the  thousand  thumbs 
that  have  turned  over  their  pages  with  delight !  —  of  the 
lone  sempstress,  whom  they  may  have  cheered  (milliner, 
or  harder-working  mantua-maker)  after  her  long  day's 
needle-toil,  running  far  into  midnight,  when  she  has 
snatched  an  hour,  ill  spared  from  sleep,  to  steep  her 
cares,  as  in  some  Lethean  cup,  in  spelling  out  their  en- 
chanting contents  !  Who  would  have  them  a  whit  less 
soiled  ?  What  better  condition  could  we  desire  to  see 
them  in  ?  CHARLES  LAMB  :  Essays  of  Elia. 

Let  us  dwell  upon  this  contrast  for  a  few  minutes.  All 
the  sunshine  appears  to  have  been  on  your  side  and  all 
the  shadow  on  his.  Born  of  highly  cultivated  parents, 
in  the  highest  rank  in  England  under  royalty,  you  have 
lived  from  the  beginning  amongst  the  most  official  aids  to 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  51 

culture,  and  Nature  has  so  endowed  you  that,  instead  of 
becoming  indifferent  to  these  things  from  familiarity,  you 
have  learned  to  value  them  more  and  more  in  every  suc- 
cessive year.  The  plainest  statement  of  your  advantages 
would  sound  like  an  extract  from  one  of  Disraeli's  novels. 
Your  father's  principal  castle  is  situated  amongst  the 
finest  scenery  in  Britain,  and  his  palace  in  London  is 
filled  with  masterpieces  of  art.  Wherever  you  have  lived 
you  have  been  surrounded  by  good  literature  and  culti- 
vated friends.  Your  health  is  steadily  robust,  you  can 
travel  wherever  you  choose,  and  all  the  benefits  of  all  the 
capitals  of  Europe  belong  to  you  as  much  as  to  their 
own  citizens.  In  all  these  gifts  and  opportunities  there  is 
but  one  evil  —  the  bewilderment  of  their  multiplicity. 
P.  G.  HAMERTON  :  The  Intellectual  Life. 

"  My  instinct  would  certainly  be  to  fight,  whether 
fighting  were  of  any  use  or  not.  But  the  propriety  of 
fighting  in  such  a  case  is  a  very  nice  question  of  judg- 
ment. So  long  as  there  is  anything  to  fight  for,  no 
matter  how  hopeless  the  odds,  a  gentleman  should  go  to 
the  front  —  but  no  longer.  The  question  must  be  to  de- 
cide the  precise  point  at  which  the  position  becomes  un- 
tenable. So  long  as  France  makes  our  quarrel  hers, 
every  man  should  give  his  personal  assistance  to  the 
cause  ;  but  it  is  absurd  to  suppose  that  if  we  were  left 
alone,  a  handful  of  Romans  against  a  great  power,  we 
could  do  more,  or  should  do  more,  than  make  a  formal  show 
of  resistance.  It  has  been  a  rule  in  all  ages  that  the  general, 
however  brave,  who  sacrifices  the  lives  of  his  soldiers  in  a 
perfectly  hopeless  resistance,  rather  than  accept  the  terms  of 
an  honorable  capitulation,  is  guilty  of  a  military  crime. 
F.  MARION  CRAWFORD  :  Saracinesca. 

The  propositions  of  William  were  framed  with  a  punctil- 
ious fairness,  such  as  might  have  been  expected  rather 
from  a  disinterested  umpire  pronouncing  an  award  than 
from  a  chivalrous  prince  dictating  to  a  helpless  enemy. 


52  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

No  fault  could  be  found  with  them  by  the  partisans  of  the 
king.  But  among  the  Whigs  there  was  much  murmuring. 
They  wanted  no  reconciliation  with  the  tyrant.  They 
thought  themselves  absolved  from  all  allegiance  to  him. 
They  were  not  disposed  to  recognize  the  authority  of  a 
parliament  convoked  by  his  writ.  They  were  averse  to  an 
armistice  ;  and  they  could  not  conceive  why,  if  there  was 
to  be  an  armistice,  it  should  be  an  armistice  on  equal 
terms.  By  all  the  laws  of  war  the  stronger  party  had  a 
right  to  take  advantage  of  his  strength ;  and  what  was 
there  in  the  character  of  James  to  justify  any  extraordi- 
nary indulgence  ?  Those  who  reasoned  thus  little  knew 
from  how  elevated  a  point  of  view,  and  with  how  discern- 
ing an  eye,  the  leader  whom  they  censured  contemplated 
the  whole  situation  of  England  and  Europe.  They  were 
eager  to  ruin  James,  and  would  therefore  have  refused  to 
treat  with  him  on  any  conditions,  or  have  imposed  on  him 
conditions  insupportably  hard.  To  the  success  of  William's 
vast  and  profound  scheme  of  policy  it  was  necessary  that 
James  should  ruin  himself  by  rejecting  conditions  ostentatiously 
liberal.  The  event  proved  the  wisdom  of  the  course  which 
the  majority  of  Englishmen  at  Hungerford  were  inclined  to 
condemn.  T.  B.  MACAULAY  :  History  of  England. 

Even  the  invention  of  railroads  has  produced  the  unforeseen 
result  of  a  return  in  the  direction  of  barbarism.  If  there  is 
one  thing  that  distinguishes  civilization,  it  is  fixity  of 
residence ;  and  it  is  essential  to  the  tranquil  following  of 
serious  intellectual  purposes  that  the  student  should  re- 
main for  many  months  of  the  year  in  his  own  library  or 
laboratory,  surrounded  by  all  his  instruments  of  culture. 
But  there  are  people  of  the  highest  rank  in  the  England  of 
to-day  whose  existence  is  as  much  nomadic  as  that  of  Red 
Indians  in  the  reserved  territories  of  North  America. 
You  cannot  ascertain  their  whereabouts  without  consulting 
the  most  recent  newspaper.  Their  life  may  be  quite  ac- 
curately described  as  a  return,  on  a  scale  of  unprece- 
dented splendor  and  comfort,  to  the  life  of  tribes  in  that 


, 
~"\TS 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  53 

stage  of  human  development  which  is  known  as  the  period 
of  the  chase.  They  migrate  from  one  hunting-ground  to 
another  as  the  diminution  of  the  game  impels  them. 
Their  residences,  vast  and  substantial  as  they  are,  serve 
only  as  tents  and  wigwams.  The  existence  of  a  monk  in 
the  cloister,  of  a  prisoner  in  a  fortress,  is  more  favorable  to  the 
intellect  tha?i  theirs.  P.  G.  HAMERTON  :  The  I?itellectual 
Life. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  Define  a  paragraph.     Give  reasons  for  your  defini- 
tion.    Why    are    paragraphs  important  ?     What  do  they 
signify  to    the    reader  ?     How    are   they    helpful    to   the 
writer  ? 

2.  In  the  following  outlines  find  the  natural  divisions 
of  the  subject,  and  arrange  the  ideas  in  paragraph  groups 
under  appropriate  topics. 

s-  i.  The  Newspaper  of  To-day.  One  of  the  many  advantages 
/of  printing.  Country  where  the  newspaper  was  first  printed. 
A  branch  of  the  periodical  press.  Feeling  that  gave  it  birth. 
The  province  of  the  newspaper  to-day.  Date  of  the  first  news- 
paper __  I  ntroduction  into  the  United  States.  Influence  upon  the 
—  "peopleT  What  has  contributed  to  its  circulation.  /Origin  of 
the  first  newspaper.  Process  of  printing  a  modern  newspaper. 
The  setting  of  the  type  by  machinery.  Electrotyping.  The 
cylinder  press.  The  circulation  of  a  large  paper.  Contributions 
to  freedom,  justice,  education.  Influence  on  literary  taste. 
Abuse  of  influence.  Influence  on  civilization.  Advantages  to 
advertisers,  merchants,  readers.  Duty  of  citizens  with  regard 
to  newspapers. 

2.  The  Benefits  of  Travel.  Broadens  the  mind.  Gives 
many  useful  ideas.  //Objects  of  travel.  Means  of  making  im- 
portant discoveries.  Travel  more  common  now  than  formerly. 
Promotes  general  intercourse.  Is  a  means  of  education.  It 
acquaints  us  with  the  manners  and  customs  of  others.  Affords 
pleasant  recollections  and  instruction.  Makes  one  contented. 
Is  a  source  of  pleasure.  A  means  of  transacting  business. 
It  makes  an  agreeable  change. 

3-  Life  of  Washington  Irving.  Early  home.  His  paren- 
tage.  Beginning  of  his  literary  career.  Third  voyage  to 
Europe,  when  and  why?  Date  and  place  of  birth.  His 


54  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

journey  through  the  West  His  law  studies.  Character 
First  literary  work.  Second  voyage  to  Europe.  Schooling 
His  last  book.  Vacation  rambles.  His  different  publications 
Home  influences.  Editor  of  a  magazine.  First  voyage  to 
Europe.  Death  and  burial.  Public  offices.  Impressions  of 
him  from  what  we  read. 

3.  Make  outlines  showing  the  divisions  of  thought  in 
six  of  these   subjects.     Gather  material  on  four^rjf  these 
subjects,  and  arrange  it  in  paragraph  groups  under  appro- 
priate topics.     Justify  your  arrangement,  showing  why  you 
group  your  ideas  as  you  do.     Assume  that  the  divisions 
you  are  making  are  for  a  theme  of  three  hundred  or  four 
hundred  words. 

1.  Michael  Angelo. 

2.  An  amateur  photographer. 

3.  The  French  Academy. 

4.  How  a  hailstone  is  formed. 

5.  The  Chicago  fire. 

6.  The  method  of  securing  a  patent. 

7.  The  Siege  of  Troy. 

-^  8.  Twenty  miles  on  a  bicycle. 

9.  A  Florida  river. 

10.  Building  a  railroad  in  China. 

11.  King  Alfred  and  the  cakes. 

12.  The  college  boat-race. 

13.  How  a  caucus  is  conducted. 

14.  Old  Ironsides. 

15.  Roman  writing  materials. 

16.  Feudalism. 

17.  The  Reign  of  Terror. 

1 8.  A  sky-scraper. 

19.  Flying-fish. 

^o.  A  Klondike  experience. 

21.  An  Indian  war-dance. 

.x22.  An  orange  grove". 

23.  The  delta  of  the  Mississippi. 

24.  How  the  President  of  the  United  States  is  elected. 

25.  The  colonies  of  the  United  States. 

26.  Municipal  government  in  the  United  States. 
27.  A  summer  on  a  farm. 

4.  Have  the  following  selections  been  properly  para- 
graphed ?     Make  any  changes  you  think  proper,  and  give 
reasons. 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  55 

SIR  ROGER  IN  LONDON. 

1.  I  was  this  morning  surprised  with  a  great  knocking  at 
the  door,  when  my  landlady's  daughter  came  up  to  me,  and 
told  me  that  there  was  a  man  below  desired  to  speak  with 
me.     Upon  my  asking  her  who  it  was,  she  told  me  it  was  a 
very  grave,  elderly  person,  but  that  she  did  not  know  his  name. 

I  immediately  went  down  to  him,  and  found  him  to  be  the 
coachman  of  my  worthy  friend  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley.  He 
told  me  that  his  master  came  to  town  last  night,  and  would 
be  glad  to  take  a  turn  with  me  in  Gray's  Inn  walks. 

As  I  was  wondering  in  myself  what  had  brought  Sir  Roger 
to  town,  not  having  lately  received  any  letter  from  him,  he 
told  me  that  his  master  was  come  up  to  get  a  sight  of  Prince 
Eugene,  and  that  he  desired  I  would  immediately  meet  him. 

I  was  not  a  little  pleased  with  the  curiosity  of  the  old 
knight,  though  I  did  not  much  wonder  at  it,  having  heard  him 
say  more  than  once  in  private  discourse,  that  he  looked  on 
Prince  Eugenio  (for  so  the  knight  always  calls  him)  to  be  a 
greater  man  than  Scanderbeg.  I  was  no  sooner  come  into 
Gray's  Inn  walks,  but  I  heard  my  friend  upon  the  terrace 
hemming  twice  or  thrice  to  himself  with  great  vigor,  for  he 
loves  to  clear  his  pipes  in  good  air  (to  make  use  of  his  own 
phrase),  and  is  not  a  little  pleased  with  any  one  who  takes 
notice  of  the  strength  which  he  still  exerts  in  his  morning 
hems. 

SQUIRE  BULL. 

2.  John  Bull  was  a  choleric  old  fellow,  who  held  a  good 
manor  in  the  middle  of  a  great  mill-pond,  which,  by  reason 
of  its  being  quite  surrounded  by  water,  was  generally  called 
"Bullock  Island." 

Bull  was  an  ingenious  man  ;  an  exceedingly  good  black- 
smith, a  dexterous  cutter,  and  a  notable  weaver  besides.  He 
was,  in  fact,  a  sort  of  Jack-at-all-trades,  and  good  at  each. 

In  addition  to  these,  he  was  a  hearty  fellow,  a  jolly  com- 
panion, and  passably  honest,  as  the  times  go. 

But  what  tarnished  all  these  qualities,  was  an  exceedingly 
quarrelsome,  overbearing  disposition,  which  was  always  get- 
ting him  into  some  scrape  or  other. 

The  truth  is,  he  never  heard  of  a  quarrel  going  on  among 
his  neighbors,  but  his  fingers  itched  to  take  a  part  in  it;  so 
he  was  hardly  ever  seen  without  a  broken  head,  a  black  eye, 
or  a  bloody  nose. 

Such  was  Squire  Bull,  as  he  was  commonly  called  by  his 
neighbors  —  one  of  those  odd,  testy,  grumbling,  boasting  old 
codgers,  that  never  get  credit  for  what  they  are,  because  they 
are  always  pretending  to  be  what  they  are  not. 


56  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  squire  was  as  tight  a  hand  to  deal  with  indoors  as  out; 
sometimes  treating  his  family  as  if  they  were  not  the  same 
flesh  and  blood,  when  they  happened  to  differ  with  him  in 
certain  matters. 

SUMMER  RAIN. 

3.  Men  begin  to  look  at  the  signs  of  the  weather.  It  is  long 
since  much  rain  fell. 

The  ground  is  a  little  dry,  and  the  road  is  a  good  deal  dusty. 
The  garden  bakes. 

Transplanted  trees  are  thirsty.  Wheels  are  shrinking  and 
tires  are  looking  dangerous. 

Men  speculate  on  the  clouds;  they  begin  to  calculate  how 
long  it  will  be,  if  no  rain  falls,  before  the  potatoes  will  suffer ; 
the  oats,  the  corn,  the  grass,  —  everything. 

Rain,  rain,  rain  !  All  day,  all  night,  steady  raining.  Will  it 
never  stop  ? 

The  hay  is  out  and  spoiling.  The  rain  washes  the  garden. 
The  ground  is  full.  All  things  have  drunk  their  fill. 

The  springs  revive,  the  meadows  are  wet ;  the  rivers  run  dis- 
colored with  soil  from  every  hill.  Smoking  cattle  reek  under 
the  sheds. 

Hens,  and  fowl  in  general,  shelter  and  plume.  The  sky  is 
leaden.  The  clouds  are  full  yet.  The  long  fleece  covers  the 
mountains. 

The  hills  are  capped  in  white.     The  air  is  full  of  moisture. 

5.  What  determines  the  length  of  a  paragraph  ?  Where 
should  you  expect  to  find  long  and  where  short  para- 
graphs ?  Find  examples  from  the  magazines  at  hand  to 
justify  your  opinions.  Bring;  to  the  class  several. consecu- 
tive paragraphs  from  thr/eWr  four  books  or  magazine 
articles,  and  account  for  the  length  of  the  paragraphs, 
making  any  criticism  on  the  paragraphing  that  you  think 
necessary. 

Make  proper  paragraph-divisions  of  the  following 
selections : 

THE  PLAGUE  IN  LONDON. 

i.  During  the  winter  of  1664,  it  had  been  whispered  about 
that  a  number  of  people  had  died,  in  some  of  the  unwholesome 
suburbs  around  London,  of  the  disease  called  the  Plague. 
News  was  not  published  then,  as  now,  and  some  people  be- 
lieved these  rumors,  and  some  disbelieved  them,  and  they 


I 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  $? 


were  soon  forgottenS/But  in  the  month  of  May,  1665,  it  began 
to  be  said  all  over  the  town  that  the  disease  had  burst  out  with 
great  violence  in  St^iles's,  and  that  the  people  were  dying  in 
great  numbers.  rf*The  roads  out  of  London  were  choked  up  by 
people  endeavoring  to  escape  from  the  infected  city,  and  large 
sums  were  paid  for  any  kind  of  conveyance.^The  disease  soon 
spread  so  fast  that  it  was  necessary  to  shut  up  the  houses  in 
which  the  sick  people  were,  and  to  cut  them  off  from  commu- 
nication with  the  living.  The  door  of  every  one  of  these 
houses  was  marked  witlj^a  red  cross,  and  the  words,  "  Lord, 
have  mercy  upon  us!"|  The  streets  were  all  deserted,  grass 
grew  in  the  public  ways,  and  there  was  a  dreadful  silence  in 
the  air. 

LETTERS  OF  RECOMMENDATION. 

2.  A  gentleman  once  advertised  for  a  boy  to  assist  him  in 
his  office,  and  nearly  fifty  applied  for  the  place.  Out  of  the 
whole  number  he,  in  a  short  time,  chose  one,  and  sent  all  the 
others  away .4  "  I  should  like  to  know,"  said  a  friend,  "  on 
what  grounds  you  chose  that  boy.  He  had  not  a  single  recom- 
mendation with  him."  f""Vou  are  mistaken,"  said  the  gentle- 
man, "he  had  a  great  number:  he  wiped  his  feet  when  he 
came  in,  and  closed  the  door  after  him  ;  showing  he  was 
orderly  and  tidy.  He  gave  up  his  seat  instantly  to  that  old 
man  ;  showing  that  he  was  kind  and  thoughtful.  He  took  off 
his  cap  when  he  came  in,  and  answered  my  questions  promptly 
and  respectfully  ;  showing  that  he  was  polite.  And  he  waited 
quietly  for  his  turn,  instead  of  pushing  the  others  aside  ;  show- 
ing that  he  was  modest.  ^Don't  you  call  these  things  letters  of 
recommendation?  I  do;  and  what  I  can  tell  about  a  boy  by 
using  my  eyes  for  ten  minutes,  is  worth  more  than  all  the  fine 
letters  he  can  bring  me." 

6.  What  do  you  understand  by  topic-sentences  ?  Of 
what  use  are  topic-sentences  to  the  reader?  To  the 
writerTXWhat  ideas  would  each  of  the  following  topic- 
sentences  suggest  to  you  ?  Write  a  group  of  such  ideas 
for  each  topic-sentence. 

1.  We  had  not  been  out  (at  sea)  many  days  when  a  violent    , 
storm  arose. 

2.  On  the  following  day  we  visited  the   Capitol  (at  Wash- 
'        ington). 

J  3.    "  During  my  residence  in  the  country,  I  used  frequently 

to  attend  service  at  the  old  village  church." 


I 


58  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

4.  With  the  coming  of  spring  the  ceremony  of  house-clean- 
ing begins. 

5.  The  roar  of  cannon  announced  that  the  battle  had  begun. 

7.  Taking  each  of  the   following   subjects  write   three 
topic-sentences  for  as  many  paragraphs  to  be  developed  in 
Be  prepared  to  justify  the  order  in  which 


4 


you  arrange  them,  and  say  to  which  you  would  give  the 
fuller  treatment. 

1.  The  country  fair. 

2.  Gathering  wild  flowers. 

3.  The  Old  State  House  in  Boston. 

4.  Government  ownership  of  railroads. 
/       5.  A  snow  blockade. 

6.   The  choice  of  an  occupation. 

8.  Look   over   the  .magazines    at  hand,   and   find  the 
topic-sentences  in  several  of  the  articles.     Bring  to  the 
class  the  topic  sentences  which  you  have  found,  together 
with  a  brief  outline  of  the  ideas  grouped  under  each. 

9.  Fill  in  the  blank  spaces  in  the  following  paragraphs 
with  topic-sentences,  writing  these  topic-sentences  in  the 
tone  and  style  of  the  paragraph. 


i. Does  the  substantive  which  we  have  turned  into  an 

adjective  imply  time  only  ?  Or  is  there  not  in  the  word  Christ- 
mas a  finer,  and  more  potent  quality  which  we  should  do  well 
to  preserve,  even  though  we  anticipate  the  Yule-tide  or  let 
our  thoughts  run  after  it?  The  real  Christmas  gift  will  bear 
bestowal  in  March  or  June  or  November,  though  if  one  can 
link  it  with  the  dearer  day,  and  put,  too,  a  little  of  the  de- 
light of  anticipation  into  some  one's  life,  a  delight  that  is  given 
to  us  all  too  charily,  why  it  is  so  much  the  better. 

2.  —  —  A  carpenter's  hammer,  in  a  warm  summer's  noon, 
will  fret  me  into  more  than  midsummer  madness.  But  those  un- 
connected, unset  sounds  are  nothing  to  the  measured  malice  of 
music.  The  ear  is  passive  to  those  single  strokes,  willingly 
enduring  stripes  while  it  hath  no  task  to  con.  To  music  it 
cannot  be  passive.  It  will  strive  —  mine  at  least  will  —  'spite 
of  its  inaptitude,  to  thrid  the  maze,  like  an  unskilled  eye  pain- 
fuJy  poring  upon  hieroglyphics.  I  have  sat  through  an 
Italian  opera,  till  for  sheer  pain,  and  inexplicable  anguish,  I 
have  rushed  out  into  the  noisiest  places  of  the  quiet  streets,  to 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  59 

solace  myself  with  sounds,  which  I  was  not  able  to  follow, 
and  get  rid  of  the  distracting  torment  of  endless,  fruitless, 
barren,  attention !  I  take  refuge  in  the  unpretending  assem- 
blage of  honest  common-life  sounds  ;  —  and  the  purgatory  of 
enraged  musicians  becomes  my  paradise. 

3.  Previous  to  the  retirement  of  Hastings  from  the  head  of 
affairs  in  Calcutta,  certain  important  changes  had  taken  place 
in  the  machinery  of  the  Company's  government.  The  con- 
cerns of  India  had  begun  to  assume  such  colossal  proportions, 
and  had  become  so  mixed  up  with  the  honor  and  wel- 
fare of  the  nation,  that  the  propriety  of  their  administration 
by  a  single  company,  although  controlled  in  a  measure  by  the 
operation  of  the  Acts  of  1772,  was  a  subject  of  grave  consider- 
ation. The  corruption  and  greed  of  the  officials  had  long 
been  a  matter  for  criticism  ;  and  from  a  consideration  of  the 
subordinate,  the  public  had  been  naturally  drawn  to  a  con- 
templation of  the  principals  ;  so  that  the  status  of  the  Com- 
pany was  pretty  freely  discussed. 


60  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  PARAGRAPH  (continued). 

22.  The  Development  of  the  Paragraph. —  Looking 
upon  the  paragraph  as  the  development  of  a  single  topic, 
we  may  next  consider  how  that  development  is  brought 
about,  its  means  and  manner.  Owing  to  the  latitude 
.  allowed  in  paragraph  development  the  subject  presents 
many  difficulties.  It  is  a  noticeable  fact  that  very  few 
writers  make  really  good  paragraphs,  and  consequent  ly 
we  find  in  most  writing  a  great  lack  of  logical  develop- 
ment. Again,  many  things  must  be  taken  into  consid- 
ji£a£ion  ;  for  instance,  the  kind_of  composition,  whether 
it  be  narrative,  descriptive,  expository,  or  argumentative, 
likewise  the  position  of  the  paragraph  in  the  theme.  It 
is  impossible  in  the  space  at  our  command  to  describe 
all  the  methods  by  which  a  topic  is  expanded  into  a  par- 
agraph ;  but  we  should  keep  in  mind  that  the  main  ob- 
ject is  to  bring  out  clearly  and  effectively  the  idea  of 
the  topic,  and  that  to  attain  this  result  all  the  details  in 
the  paragraph  should  be  so  arranged  as  to  aid  in  the 
process.  We  shall  now  consider  a  few  of  the  more 
common  methods  of  development.  These  are  not  to  be 
thought  of  as  arbitrary,  but  rather  as  convenient,  and 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  6 1 

they  are  chiefly  valuable  for  study  and  practice  in  train- 
ing the  mind  to  orderly  thought.  They  .also  bring  the 
pupil  to  a  sense  of  the  unity  and  coherence  in  good  para- 
graphs, and  he  will  then  develop  his  own  accordingly. 

23.  Development  by  Repetition. —  Since  the  paragraph 
must  have  unity,  and  unity  results  from  a  relation  of 
each  part  to  the  topic-sentence,  the  most  obvious  de- 
velopment of  the  topic-sentence  will  be  by  repetition. 
The  repetition  must,  of  course,  give  the  thought  greater 
definiteness,  make  it  more  emphatic  or  of  larger  import, 
or  present  it  in  some  new  form.  This  method  is  effec- 
tive in  exposition  where  explanation  is  needed,  and  in 
argument  where  the  reader  is  to  be  convinced.  The 
following  paragraph  will  illustrate  development  by  repe- 
tition :  — 

"  A  good  summer  storm  is  a  rain  of  riches.  If  gold  and 
silver  rattled  clown  from  the  clouds,  they  would  hardly  en- 
rich the  land  so  much  as  soft,  long  rains.  Every  drop  is 
silver  going  to  the  mint.  The  roots  are  machinery,  and 
catching  the  willing  drops,  they  assay  them,  refine  them, 
roll  them,  stamp  them,  and  turn  them  out  coined  berries, 
apples,  grains,  and  grasses !  When  the  heavens  send 
clouds,  and  they  bank  up  the  horizon,  be  sure  they  have 
hidden  gold  in  them." 

HENRY  WARD  BEECHER. 

Sentence  I  is  the  topic  sentence  to  be  developed. 
Sentence  2  presents  the  idea  in  a  new  form  and  more 
definitely.  Sentence  3  gives  still  another  turn  to  the 
idea  in  sentence  I  and  greater  definiteness.  Sentence  4 
carries  out  the  idea  in  sentence  3,  and  emphasizes  it. 


62  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

Sentence  5  again  repeats  the  idea  in  sentences  i,  2,  and 
3,  but  in  a  new  form.  The  entire  group  of  sentences 
leaves  upon  the  mind  the  single  impression  that  rain  is 
a  source  of  riches. 

Look  over  the  following  paragraphs  carefully,  point 
out  the  repetitions,  and  explain  in  what  way  each  one 
develops  the  thought  of  the  topic-sentence. 

It  is  difficult  for  anyone  who  cares  for  justice  to  read  party 
journals  without  frequent  irritation,  and  it  does  not  signify 
which  side  the  newspaper  takes.  Men  are  so  unfair  in  con- 
troversy that  we  best  preserve  the  serenity  of  the  intellect  by 
studiously  avoiding  all  literature  that  has  a  controversial  tone. 
By  your  new  rule  of  abstinence  from  newspapers  you  will  no 
doubt  gain  almost  as  much  in  serenity  as  in  time.  To  the 
ordinary  newspaper  reader  there  is  little  loss  of  serenity,  be- 
cause he  reads  only  the  newspaper  that  he  agrees  with,  and 
however  unfair  it  is,  he  is  pleased  by  its  unfairness.  But  the 
highest  and  best  culture  makes  us  disapprove  of  unfairness 
on  our  own  side  of  the  question  also.  We  are  pained  by  it ; 
we  feel  humiliated  by  it,  we  lament  its  persistence  and  its 
perversity.  P.  G.  HAMERTON  :  Intellectual  Life, 

The  fact  is,  that  the  qualities  that  raise  man  above  the  ani-. 
mal  are  superimposed  on  those  which  he  shares  with  the 
animal,  and  that  it  is  only  as-  he  is  relieved  from  the  wants 
of  his  animal  nature  that  his  intellectual  and  moral  nature 
can  grow.  Compel  a  man  to  drudgery  for  the  necessities 
of  animal  existence,  and  he  will  lose  the  incentive  to  in- 
dustry —  the  progenitor  of  skill  —  and  will  do  only  what  he 
is  forced  to  do.  Make  his  condition  such  that  it  cannot  be 
much  worse,  while  there  is  little  hope  that  anything  that  he 
can  do  will  make  it  much  better,  and  he  will  cease  to  look 
beyond  the  day.  Deny  him  leisure,  —  and  leisure  does  not 
mean  the  want  of  employment,  but  the  absence  of  need 
which  forces  to  uncongenial  employment  —  and  you  can- 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  63 

not,  even  by  running  the  child  through  a  common  school 
and  supplying  the  man  with  a  newspaper,  make  him 
intelligent.  HENRY  GEORGE  :  Progress  and  Poverty. 

After  all,  a  naval  war  upsets  all  calculations,  and  it  is  full 
of  inconsistencies.  The  silence  of  the  "  wizards  "  who  were 
going  to  annihilate  any  and  all  our  haughty  foes  in  new  and 
dreadful  ways  became  positively  oppressive  after  hostili- 
ties actually  began.  The  novel  things  which  we  fixed  up 
ourselves  for  the  same  purpose  we  guessed,  on  the  whole, 
we  would  not  bother  with  for  the  present.  We  just  relied 
on  men  and  guns,  and  in  so  doing  took  the  least  possible 
risk,  as  we  knew  very  well,  —  although  the  rest  of  the 
world  did  not.  And  as  for  our  inconsistencies,  we  can 
admit  them  cheerfully  enough,  since  they  do  not  seem  to 
have  affected  the  general  result.  Some  of  them,  no  doubt, 
revealed  us  in  a  new  light,  perhaps  shed  much  luminosity 
on  our  way  of  waging  horrid  war.  And  I  suppose  in  this 
respect  none  of  them  is  more  typical  than  the  conduct  of 
that  captain  of  a  blockading  warship,  who,  while  his  vessel 
was  lying  off  a  lighthouse  held  by  the  Spaniards,  discov- 
ered that  the  half-starved  lighthouse  keeper  was  destitute 
of  supplies  and  had  a  very  sick  baby,  and  thereupon  pro- 
ceeded to  send  to  that  baby  every  morning,  under  a  flag 
of  truce,  a  can  of  condensed  milk.  The  Independent. 

The  English,  in  fact,  are  strongly  gifted  with  the  rural 
feeling.  They  possess  a  quick  sensibility  to  the  beauties 
of  nature,  and  a  keen  relish  for  the  pleasures  and  employ- 
ments of  the  country.  This  passion  seems  inherent  in 
them.  Even  the  inhabitants  of  cities,  born  and  brought 
up  among  brick  walls  and  bustling  streets,  enter  with 
iacility  into  rural  habits,  and  evince  a  tact  for  rural  occu- 
pation. The  merchant  has  his  snug  retreat  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  metropolis,  where  he  often  displays  as  much  pride  and 
zeal  in  the  cultivation  of  his  flower-garden,  and  the  matu- 
rity of  his  fruits,  as  he  does  in  the  conduct  of  his  business 


64  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

and  the  success  of  a  commercial  enterprise.  Even  those 
less  fortunate  individuals,  who  are  doomed  to  pass  their 
lives  in  the  midst  of  din  and  traffic,  contrive  to  have  some- 
thing that  shall  remind  them  of  the  green  aspect  of  nature. 
In  the  most  dark  and  dingy  quarters  of  the  city,  the  draw- 
ing-room window  resembles  frequently  a  bank  of  flowers ; 
every  spot  capable  of  vegetation  has  its  grass-plot  and 
flower-bed ;  and  every  square  its  mimic  park,  laid  out  with 
picturesque  taste,  and  gleaming  with  refreshing  verdure. 
WASHINGTON  IRVING  :  Sketch  J3ook. 

24.  "  Development  by  Detail.  —  A  second  method  of 
developing  the  topic-sentence  is  by  giving  details.  These 
details  should  be  such  as  are  appropriate  to  the  topic- 
sentence,  and  should  add  something  to  the  thought  in 
each  case,  just  as  in  the  method  by  repetition  ;  indeed, 
the  two  methods  are  closely  related,  for  in  giving  details 
we  repeat  to  some  extent  the  idea  of  the  topic-sentence. 
This  method  is  used  in  all  kinds  of  discourse.  Some- 
times, as  in  the  last  selection  of  the  preceding  section, 
the  two  methods  are  combined. 

The  following  paragraph  will  illustrate  the  method  of 
development  by  detail :  — 

The  country  was  yet  naked  and  leafless  ;  but  English 
scenery  is  always  verdant,  and  the  sudden  change  in  the 
temperature  of  the  weather  was  surprising  in  its  quicken- 
ing effects  upon  the  landscape.  It  was  inspiring  and  ani- 
mating to  witness  this  first  awakening  of  spring ;  to  feel  its 
warm  breath  stealing  over  the  senses  ;  to  see  the  moist, 
mellow  earth  beginning  to  put  forth  the  green  sprout  and 
the  tender  blade ;  and  the  trees  and  shrubs,  in  their  reviv- 
ing tints  and  bursting  buds,  giving  the  promise  of  return- 
ing foliage  and  flower.  The  cold  snow-drop,  that  little 
borderer  on  the  skirts  of  winter,  was  to  be  seen  with  its 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  65 

chaste  white  blossoms  in  the  small  gardens  before  the  cot- 
tages. The  bleating  of  the  new-dropt  lambs  was  faintly 
heard  from  the  fields.  The  swallows  twittered  about  the 
thatched  eaves  and  budding  hedges;  the  robin  threw  a 
livelier  note  into  his  late  querulous  wintry  strain  ;  and  the 
lark,  springing  up  from  the  reeking  bosom  of  the  meadow, 
towered  away  into  the  bright,  fleecy  cloud,  pouring  forth 
torrents  of  melody. 

WASHINGTON  IRVING  :    The  Sketch  Book. 

It  will  be  readily  seen  that  the  topic-sentence  in  this 
paragraph  is,  "  It  was  inspiring  and  animating  to  witness 
this  first  awakening  of  spring."  In  the  sentences  that 
follow  Irving  enumerates  in  detail  some  of  the  things  that 
characterize  the  awakening  of  spring.  Each  sentence 
and  each  clause  adds  something  to  the  thought,  and 
makes  more  emphatic  the  general  idea  in  the  topic-sen- 
tence. 

Study  the  following  paragraphs,  point  out  what  sen- 
tences give  details  developing  the  topic-sentence,  and  say 
how  they  add  to  the  thought  :  — 

i .  Much  good  had  come  to  Florence  since  the  dim  time 
of  struggle  between  the  old  patron  and  the  new  ;  some 
quarreling  and  bloodshed,  doubtless,  between  Guelf  and 
Ghibelline,  between  Black  and  White,  between  orthodox 
sons  of  the  Church  and  heretic  Paterini;  some  floods, 
famine,  and  pestilence  ;  but  still  much  wealth  and  glory. 

2.  Florence    had  achieved    conquests    over  walled    cities 
once  mightier  than  itself,  and  especially  over  hated  Pisa, 
whose  marble  buildings  were  too  high  and  beautiful,  whose 
masts  were  too  much  honored  on  Greek  and  Italian  coasts. 

3.  'The  name  of  Florence  had  been  growing  prouder  and 
prouder  in  all  the  courts  of  Europe,  nay,  in  Africa  itself, 
on  the  strength  of  purest  gold  coinage,  finest  dyes  and 


66  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

textures,  pre-eminent  scholarship  and  poetic  genius,  and 
wits  of  the  most  serviceable  sort  for  statesmanship  and 
banking ;  it  was  a  name  so  omnipresent  that  a  Pope  with 
a  turn  for  epigram  had  called  Florentines  "  the  fifth  ele- 
ment." 4.  And  for  this  high  destiny,  though  it  might 
partly  depend  on  the  stars  and  Madonna  dell  Impruneta, 
and  certainly  depended  on  other  higher  powers  less  often 
named,  the  praise  was  greatly  due  to  San  Giovanni,  whose 
image  was  on  the  fair  gold  florins. 

GEORGE  ELIOT  :    Romola. 

i.  Lord  Plowden  was  familiarly  spoken  of  as  a  hand- 
some man.  2.  Thorpe  had  even  heard  him  called  the 
handsomest  man  in  England  —  though  this  seemed  in  all 
likelihood  an  exaggeration.  3.  But  handsome  he  un- 
doubtedly was,  —  tall,  without  suggesting  the  thought  of 
height  to  the  observer ;  erect,  yet  graceful ;  powerfully 
built,  while  preserving  the  effect  of  slenderness.  4.  His 
face  in  repose  had  the  outline  of  the  more  youthful  guards- 
man type, — regular,  finely  cut,  impassive  to  hardness. 
5.  When  he  talked,  or  followed  with  interest  the  talk  of 
others,  it  revealed  almost  an  excess  of  animation.  6. 
Then  one  noted  the  flashing  subtlety  of  his  glance,  the 
swift  facility  of  his  smile  and  comprehending  brows,  and 
saw  that  it  was  not  the  guardsman's  face  at  all.  7.  His 
skin  was  fresh-hued,  and  there  was  a  shade  of  warm  brown 
in  his  small,  well-ordered  mustache,  but  his  hair,  wavy,  and 
worn  longer  than  the  fashion,  seemed  black.  8.  There 
were  perceptible  veins  of  gray  in  it,  though  he  had  only 
entered  his  thirty-fifth  year.  9.  He  was  dressed  habitu- 
ally with  the  utmost  possible  care. 

HAROLD  FREDERIC  :    The  Market  Place. 

i.  There  is  something,  too,  in  the  sternly  simple  fea- 
tures of  the  Spanish  landscape,  that  impresses  on  the  soul 
a  feeling  of  sublimity.  2.  The  immense  plains  of  the  Cas- 
tiles  and  La  Mancha,  extending  as  far  as  the  eye  can 
reach,  derive  an  interest  from  their  very  nakedness  and 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  67 

immensity,  and  have  something  of  the  solemn  grandeur  of 
the  ocean.  3.  In  ranging  over  these  boundless  wastes, 
the  eye  catches  sight,  here  and  there,  of  a  straggling  herd 
of  cattle,  attended  by  a  lonely  herdsman,  motionless  as  a 
statue,  with  his  long  slender  pike  tapering  up  like  a  lance 
into  the  air ;  or  beholds  a  long  train  of  mules  slowly  mov- 
ing along  the  waste  like  a  train  of  camels  in  the  desert,  or 
a  single  herdsman,  armed  with  blunderbuss  and  stiletto, 
and  prowling  over  the  plain.  4.  Thus,  the  country,  the 
habits,  the  very  looks  of  the  people,  have  something  of  the 
Arabian  character.  5.  The  general  insecurity  of  the 
country  is  evinced  in  the  universal  use  of  weapons.  6. 
The  herdsman  in  the  field,  the  shepherd  in  the  plain,  has 
his  musket  and  his  knife.  7.  The  wealthy  villager  rarely 
ventures  to  the  market-town  without  his  trabucho,  and, 
perhaps,  a  servant  on  foot  with  a  blunderbuss  on  his 
shoulder  ;  and  the  most  petty  journey  is  undertaken  with 
the  preparations  of  a  warlike  enterprise. 

WASHINGTON  IRVING  :    The  Alhambra. 

As  we  have  remarked  above,  a  paragraph  is  occasion- 
ally developed  by  the  two  methods  of  repetition  and  of 
details.  In  the  paragraph  following  determine  which 
method  of  development  each  sentence  employs :  — 

i .  Now  it  will  be  obvious  to  any  one  at  a  glance  that  God 
has  not  made  any  such  thing  as  a  complete  remembrance  of 
past  ages  possible.  2.  He  writes  oblivion  against  all  but  a 
few  names  and  things,  and  empties  the  world  to  give  freer 
space  for  what  is  to  come.  3.  No  tongue  could  recite  the 
whole  vast  story  if  it  were  known,  the  world  could  not  con- 
tain the  books  if  it  were  written,  and  no  mind  reading  the 
story  could  give  it  possible  harbor.  4.  Besides,  there  are 
things  in  the  past  which  no  tradition  can  accurately  carry 
and  no  words  represent.  5.  Who  that  will  untwist  the 
subtle  motives  of  action  can  do  it  far  enough  to  make  out 
anything  better  than  a  tolerable  fiction  ?  6.  Who  can  paint 


68  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

a  great  soul's  passion  as  that  passion,  looked  upon,  painted 
itself  ?  7.  To  come  down  to  things  more  humble,  yet  by  no 
means  less  significant,  by  what  words  can  any  one  find 
how  to  set  forth  a  gait  or  a  voice  ?  8.  And  yet  if  I  could 
simply  see  the  back  of  Cato  jogging  out  afield,  or  hear  one 
sentence  spoken  by  Caesar's  voice,  it  really  seems  to  me 
that  I  should  get  a  better  knowledge  of  either,  from  that 
single  token,  than  I  have  gotten  yet  from  all  other  sources. 
9.  So  very  important  are  words  to  reproduce,  or  keep  in 
impression  the  facts  and  men  of  history.  10.  We  have  a 
way  of  speaking,  in  which  we  congratulate  ourselves  on 
the  score  of  a  distinction  between  what  are  called  the 
unhistoric  and  historic  ages.  n.  The  unhistoric,  we 
fancy,  make  no  history,  because  they  have  ho  written  lan- 
guage!—** 2.  But  having  such  a  gift,  with  paper  to  receive 
the  record  of  it,  and  types  to  multiply  that  record,  and 
libraries  to  keep  it,  and,  back  of  all,  a  body  of  learned 
scribes,  who  are  skilled  in  writing  history  as  one  of  the 
elegant  arts,  we  conclude  that  now  the  historic  age  •  has 
come.  13.  We  do  not  perceive,  that,  in  just  this  manner, 
we  are  going  to  overwrite  history,  and  write  so  much  of  it 
that  we  shall  have  really  none.  14.  If  we  had  the  whole 
world's  history  written  out  in  such  detail  of  art,  we  could 
not  even  now  make  anything  of  it  —  the  historic  shelf  of 
your  library  would  girdle"3 the  world.  15.  What,  then,  will 
our  written  history  be  to  us,  after  it  has  gotten  fifty  mil- 
lions of  years  into  its  record  ?  for  we  must  not  forget  that 
the  age  we  live  in  is  but  the  world's  early  morning.  16. 
Calling  it  the  historic  age,  then,  what  are  we  doing  but  in 
oblivion,  as  the  unhistoric  age  took  it  without  writing  at  all. 
HORACE  BUSHNELL  :  Moral  Uses  of  Dark  Things. 

25.  Development  by  Specific  Examples.  —  A  third 
method  of  developing  the  paragraph  is  by  giving  specific 
instances  or  examples.  This  method  of  development 
is  employed  where  the  topic-sentence  is  in  the  form  of  a 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  69 

general  statement.  The  preceding  methods  may  also  be 
employed  for  the  same  purpose,  but  specific  instances 
are  more  effective  in  illustrating  and  enforcing  a  general 
statement,  and  may  be  used  in  description,  exposition,  or 
argument.  The  following  paragraphs  are  developed  ac- 
cording to  this  method.  The  pupil  should  study  them 
carefully,  and  note  the  effect  of  the  several  instances  in 
developing  the  topic-sentence  :  — 

If  we  look  for  the  explanation  of  the  situation,  it  ap- 
pears primarily  in  the  absolute  disorganization  of  the 
Liberal  party.  It  has  no  policy,  no  leader.  It  stands  for 
nothing.  Its  most  prominent  men  are  either  practically 
at  one  with  the  Conservatives  in  policy,  jealous  of  each 
other,  incompetent,  or  mere  theorists  and  cranks.  Lord 
Rosebery  is  as  much  an  Imperialist  as  Lord  Salisbury, 
perhaps  more  of  one.  Sir  William  Harcourt  is  a  disap- 
pointed man,  who  vents  his  spleen  whenever  he  finds 
opportunity,  whether  it  be  at  the  expense  of  the  High 
Church  party,  the  Colonial  expansionists,  the  Chancellor 
of  the  Exchequer,  or  anybody  else,  and  his  blows  hit 
his  own  associates  as  sharply  as  they  do  his  opponents. 
Sir  Henry  Campbell-Bannerman  has  shown  that  he  cannot 
rise  above  mediocrity ;  while  Mr.  Labouchere  is  prac- 
tically the  buffoon  in  politics,  holding  his  own  only  by 
virtue  of  an  occasional  sally  into  sober  common  sense. 
John  Morley  has  dropped  out.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
is  Mr.  Chamberlain,  clear  headed,  incisive,  determined, 
the  one  man  in  England  who  knows  exactly  what  he 
wants  and  is  bound  to  have  it.  Even  less  in  evidence, 
though  probably  still  more  effective,  is  the  Premier,  hold- 
ing the  many  lines  of  English  politics  with  a  loose, 
almost  cynical  hand,  yet  so  that  the  slightest  movement 
serves  only  to  strengthen  his  grip  on  them.  There  is 
Arthur  Balfour,  whose  leadership  in  the  House  has 


70  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

already  proved  his  ability.     The  result  was   a   foregone 
conclusion. 

Editorial  in  the  Independent,  Oct.  n,  1900. 

It  is  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  writers  who  win  the 
greatest  renown  are  commonly  hasty,  and  that  they  dash  off 
what  they  say  by  a  stroke  of  genius.  The  biography  of 
Dickens  shows  what  pains  he  took  to  secure  even  the  right 
proper  names ;  for  example,  note  his  choice  of  the  title 
"  Household  Words."  Pages  of  his  proof-sheets  which  I 
have  seen  show  how  carefully  he  revised  every  paragraph. 
The  very  last  proofs  of  "  Peveril  of  the  Peak"  (owned  by 
President  White)  show  that  a  romance  of  Walter  Scott  re- 
ceived the  master's  final  touches  just  before  the  printing 
began.  Bret  Harte's  famous  poem  on  the  Heathen  Chi- 
nee was  corrected  and  re-corrected,  and  on  the  ultimate 
revision  received,  I  believe,  that  satirical  touch  which 
gave  it  world-wide  fame  :  "  We  are  ruined  by  Chinese 
cheap  labor."  Emerson  is  considered  by  many  as  a  sort 
of  oracle,  simply  opening  his  mouth  to  let  fall  aphorisms 
of  profound  importance,  but  recent  and  authentic  narra- 
tives of  his  life  show  that  he  forged  his  sentences  like  the 
gold-beater  who  is  preparing  a  setting  for  pearls. 

DANIEL  COIT  GILMAN  :    College  Training,  an  address. 

In  no  modern  society,  not  even  in  England  during  the 
reign  of  Elizabeth,  has  there  been  so  great  a  number  of 
men  eminent  at  once  in  literature  and  in  the  pursuits  of 
active  life,  as  Spain  produced  during  the  sixteenth  century. 
Almost  every  distinguished  writer  was  distinguished  also  as 
a  soldier  and  a  politician.  Boscan  bore  arms  with  a  high 
reputation.  Garcilaso  de  Vega,  the  author  of  the  sweetest 
and  most  graceful  pastoral  poem  of  modern  times,  after  a 
short  but  splendid  military  career,  fell  sword  in  hand  at 
the  head  of  a  storming  party.  Alonzo  de  Ercilla  bore  a 
conspicuous  part  in  the  war  of  Arauco  which  he  afterwards 
.celebrated  in  one  of  the  best  heroic  poems  that  Spain  has 
produced.  Hurtado  de  Mendoza,  whose  poems  have  been 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  71 

compared  to  those  of  Horace,  and  whose  charming  little 
novel  is  the  model  of  Gil  Bias,  has  been  handed  down  to  us 
as  one  of  the  sternest  of  those  iron  proconsuls  who  were 
employed  by  the  House  of  Austria  to  crush  the  lingering 
public  spirit  of  Italy.  Lope  sailed  in  the  Armada  ;  Cer- 
vantes was  wounded  at  Lepanto. 

T.  B.  MACAULAY  :  Essays. 

.  26.     Development   by   Comparison   or   Contrast.  —  A 

fourth  method  of  developing  a  paragraph  is  by  compari- 
son or  by  contrast.  In  comparison  the  points  of  resem- 
blance between  the  subject  of  thought  and  some  well- 
known  object  are  brought  out.  This  comparison  is  not 
to  be  understood  as  of  the  nature  of  a  purely  rhetorical 
figure.  A  great  deal  of  our  reasoning  is  by  comparison, 
and  our  knowledge  of  all  sorts  is  largely  relative.  The 
enforcing  of  the  statement  of  a  topic-sentence  by  com- 
parison is  more  in  the  way  of  illustration  than  of  proof. 
If  the  difference  between  the  subject  of  thought  and 
some  well-known  object  be  brought  out  we  call  the  pro- 
cess a  contrast.  The  statement  of  the  topic-sentence  is 
made  more  emphatic  by  being  placed  in  contrast  with 
something  of  a  different  but  not  necessarily  conflicting 
character.  The  development  by  comparison  or  by  con- 
trast is  much  used  in  description  and  exposition.  The 
following  paragraphs  will  illustrate  this  method  :  — 

Some  minds  are  wonderful  for  keeping  their  bloom  in  this 
way,  as  a  patriarchal  gold-fish  apparently  retains  to  the  last 
its  youthful  illusion  that  it  can  swim  in  a  straight  line  be- 
yond the  encircling  glass.  Mrs.  Tulliver  was  an  amiable 
fish  of  this  kind  ;  and  after  running  her  head  against  the 


72  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

same   resisting  medium  for  thirteen  years,  would  go  at  it 
again  to-day  with  undulled  alacrity. 

GEORGE  ELIOT  :    77/6-  Mill  on  the  Floss. 

Day  was  breaking  on  the  world.  Light,  hope,  freedom, 
pierced  with  vitalizing  ray  the  clouds  and  the  miasma  that 
hung  so  thick  over  the  prostrate  Middle  Age,  once  noble 
and  mighty,  now  a  foul  image  of  decay  and  death. 
Kindled  with  new  life,  the  nations  gave  birth  to  a  progeny 
of  heroes,  and  the  stormy  glories  of  the  sixteenth  century 
rose  on  awakened  Europe.  But  Spain  was  the  citadel  of 
darkness,  a  monastic  cell,  an  inquisitorial  dungeon, 
where  no  ray  could  pierce.  She  was  the  bulwark  of  the 
church,  against  whose  adamantine  wall  the  waves  of  inno- 
vation beat  in  vain.  In  every  country  of  Europe  the 
party  of  freedom  and  reform  was  the  national  party,  the 
party  of  reaction  and  absolutism  was  the  Spanish  party, 
leaning  on  Spain,  looking  to  her  for  help.  Above  all:  it 
was  so  in  France ;  and  while  within  her  bounds  there  was 
a  semblance  of  peace,  the  national  and  religious  rage  burst 
forth  on  a  wider  theatre.  Thither  it  is  for  us  to  follow  it, 
where  on  the  shores  of  Florida,  the  Spaniard  and  the 
Frenchman,  the  bigot  and  the  Huguenot,  met  in  the 
grapple  of  death.1  FRANCIS  PARKMAN  : 

Pioneers  of  France  in  the  New  World. 

In  the  following  paragraphs  point  out  the  compari- 
sons or  the  contrasts,  and  show  how  they  are  effective 
in  developing  the  paragraphs  :  — 

Mr.  Speaker,  I  know  of  no  parallel  to  this  charming 
philosophy,  unless  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  sayings  of 
Mause  Hedrigg,  an  elderly  Scotch  lady,  who  figures  in 
one  of  Sir  Walter  Scott's  novels.  In  one  of  her  evangeli- 
cal moods,  she  rebuked  her  son  Cuddie  for  vising  a  fan,  or 
any  work  of  art,  to  clean  his  barley.  She  said  it  was  an 

1  Permission  of  Little,  Brown  &  Co.,  publishers. 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  73 

awesome  denial  o'  Providence  not  to  wait  His  own  time, 
when  He  would  surely  send  wind  to  winnow  the  chaff  out 
of  the  grain.  In  the  same  spirit  of  enlightened  philoso- 
phy does  the  gentleman  exhort  us  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  and 
Illinois,  to  cease  our  impious  road-making,  and  wait  the 
good  time  of  Providence,  who  will,  as  he  seems  to  think, 
surely  send  a  river  to  run  from  Cumberland  over  the  Alle- 
ghanies,  across  the  Ohio,  and  so  on,  in  its  heaven-directed 
course,  to  St.  Louis. 

THOMAS  CORWIN  :    The  Cumberland  Road. 

If  it  were  only  for  a  vocabulary,  the  scholar  would  be 
covetous  of  action.  Life  is  our  dictionary.  Years  are 
well  spent  in  country  labors ;  in  town,  —  in  the  insight 
into  trades  and  manufactures  ;  in  frank  intercourse  with 
many  men  and  women ;  in  science ;  in  art ;  to  the  one  end 
of  mastering  in  all  their  facts  a  language  by  which  to  illus- 
trate and  embody  our  perceptions.  I  learn  immediately 
from  any  speaker  how  much  he  has  already  lived,  through 
the  poverty  or  the  splendor  of  his  speech.  Life  lies  be- 
hind us  as  the  quarry  whence  we  get  tiles  and  cope- 
stones  for  the  masonry  of  to-day.  This  is  the  way  to 
learn  grammar.  Colleges  and  books  only  copy  the  lan- 
guage which  the  field  and  the  workyard  made. 

RALPH  WALDO  EMERSON:    The  American  Scholar -,1 

...  He  (Grant)  surpassed  his  predecessors  also  in  the 
dignity  of  the  object  for  which  he  fought.  The  three 
great  generals  of  the  world  are  usually  enumerated  — 
following  Macaulay — 'as  being  Caesar,  Cromwell,  and 
Napoleon.  Two  of  these  fought  in  wars  of  mere  conquest, 
and  the  contests  of  the  third  were  marred  by  a  gloomy 
fanaticism,  by  cruelty  and  by  selfishness.  General  Grant 
fought  to  restore  a  nation,  that  nation  being  the  hope  of 
the  world.  And  he  restored  it..  His  work  was  as  com- 
plete as  it  was  important.  Caesar  died  by  violence ; 
Napoleon  died  defeated;  Cromwell's  work  crumbled  to 

1  Permission  of  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  publishers. 


74  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

pieces  when  his  hand  was  cold.  Grant's  career  triumphed 
in  its  ending ;  it  is  at  its  height  to-day.  It  was  finely  said 
by  a  Massachusetts  statesman  that  we  did  not  fight  to 
bring  our  opponents  to  our  feet  but  only  to  our  side. 
Grant  to-day  brings  his  opponents  literally  to  his  side, 
when  they  act  as  pallbearers  around  his  coffin. 

-  T.  W.  HIGGINSON  :    Ulysses  S.  Grant. 

No,  sir,  we  are  above  all  this.  Let  the  Highland  clans- 
man, half-naked,  half-civilized,  half-blinded  by  the  peat 
smoke  of  his  cavern,  have  his  hereditary  enemy,  and  his 
hereditary  enmity,  and  keep  his  keen,  deep,  and  precious 
hatred,  set  on  fire  of  hell,  alive  if  he  can ;  let  the 
North  American  Indian  have  his,  and  hand  it  down 
from  father  to  son,  by  Heaven  knows  what  symbols 
of  alligators,  and  rattlesnakes,  and  war-clubs  smeared 
with  vermilion  and  entwined  with  scarlet ;  let  such  a 
country  as  Poland,  cloven  to  the  earth,  the  armed  heel  on 
her  radiant  forehead,  her  body  dead,  her  soul  incapable  of 
dying,  —  let  her  remember  the  wrongs  of  days  long  past ;  .  .  . 
but  shall  America,  young,  free,  and  prosperous,  just  setting 
out  on  the  highway  of  Heaven,  .  .  .  shall  she  be  supposed 
to  be  polluting  and  corroding  her  noble  and  happy  heart,  by 
moping  over  old  stories  of  stamp-act,  and  the  tax,  and  the 
firing  of  the  Leopard  on  the  Chesapeake  in  time  of  peace  ? 
No,  sir  ;  no,  sir ;  a  thousand  times,  No  ! 

RUFUS  CHOATE  :   The  Old  Grudge  against  England. 

27.  Development  by  Cause  and  Effect.  A  fifth 
method  by  which  a  paragraph  grows  from  a  topic  is  by 
making  the  topic-sentence  the  cause,  and  immediately 
following  it  by  the  effects  produced.  A  full  paragraph 
of  effects  is  not  often  found  ;  more  often  a  few  sen^ 
tences  at  the  end  give  the  effect.  This  method  of  de- 
velopment  is  common  in  almost  all  kinds  of  discourse, 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  75 

and  is  often  indicated  by  such  words  as  therefore,  conse- 
quently, and  others,  but  sometimes  this  relation  of  cause 
and  effect  is  left  to  the  understanding  of  the  reader.  If 
properly  suggested,  it  will  be  equally  clear  and  vivid, 
and  may  be  more  pleasing  by  reason  of  being  less 
formal. 

Point  out  the  relation  of  cause  and  effect  in  the  para- 
graphs that  follow  :  — 

The  most  erudite  woman  I  know  studies  as  hard  at 
thirty-eight  as  she  did  at  eighteen.  She  speaks  five  lan- 
guages, is  "  up  "  in  many  systems  of  philosophy ;  conver- 
sant with  scientific  discoveries,  and  is  a  competent  art 
critic.  For  all  that  her  acquaintances  and  the  outer  world 
are  benefited  by  her  attainments  she  might  as  well  be 
unable  to  read  or  to  write.  She  has  her  own  study  in  her 
father's  house,  and  takes  no  interest  in  any  other  part  of 
it,  seldom  descending  to  the  drawing-room  ;  and  when  she 
takes  her  meals  with  the  family  rarely  speaks  unless 
directly  addressed.  She  hates  housewifery,  has  never 
made  a  bed  or  dusted  a  room,  and  considers  the  thimble 
"  a  degrading  implement,  a  relic  of  the  barbarous  ages 
when  woman  was  a  chattel  and  a  beast  of  burden." 

MARION  HARLAND  :    The  Independent. 

This  treatment  of  his  subjects  and  ignominious  punish- 
ment of  his  friend  outraged  the  pride  and  exasperated  the 
passions  of  Philip.  The  bolt  which  had  fallen  thus  at  his 
very  feet  awakened  him  to  the  gathering  storm,  and  he 
determined  to  trust  himself  no  longer  in  the  power  of  the 
white  men.  The  fate  of  his  insulted  and  broken-hearted 
brother  still  rankled  in  his  mind ;  and  he  had  a  further 
warning  in  the  tragical  story  of  Miantonomah,  a  great 
Sachem  of  the  Narragansetts,  who,  after  manfully 
facing  his  accusers  before  a  tribunal  of  the  colonists, 
exculpating  himself  from  a  charge  of  conspiracy,  and 


76  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

receiving  assurances  of  amity,  had  been  perfidiously 
despatched  at  their  instigation.  Philip,  therefore,  gath- 
ered his  fighting  men  about  him ;  persuaded  all  strangers 
that  he  could  to  join  his  cause ;  sent  the  women 
and  children  to  the  Narragansetts  for  safety ;  and  wher- 
ever he  appeared,  was  continually  surrounded  by  armed 
warriors. 

WASHINGTON  IRVING  :   The  Sketch  Book. 

28.  Development  by  Proofs.  —  In  argumentative  dis- 
course a  theme  is  often  developed  by  giving  proofs. 
The  topic-sentence  is  the  proposition  to  be  established  ; 
the  other  sentences  give  the  proofs.  These  proofs  will, 
of  course,  take  different  forms,  varying  from  simple  evi- 
dence in  support  of  the  principal  statement  to  more 
formal  and  logical  presentation  of  the  proof. 

The  following  paragraphs  will  illustrate  this  method 
of  development  :  — 

Cathedrals  were  essentially  expressions  of  the  popular 
will  and  the  popular  faith.  They  were  the  work  neither 
of  ecclesiastics  nor  of  feudal  barons.  They  represent 
in  a  measure  the  decline  of  feudalism,  and  the  preva- 
lence of  the  democratic  element  in  society.  No  sooner 
did  a  city  achieve  its  freedom  than  its  people  began 
to  take  thought  for  a  cathedral.  Of  all  arts,  archi- 
tecture is  most  quickly  responsive  to  the  instincts 
and  the  desires'  of  a  people.  And  in  the  cathedrals 
the  popular  beliefs,  hopes,  fears,  fancies,  and  aspira- 
tions found  expression,  and  were  perpetuated  in  a  lan- 
guage intelligible  to  all.  The  life  of  the  Middle  Ages  is 
recorded  on  their  walls.  When  the  democratic  element 
was  subdued,  as  in  Cologne  by  a  prince  bishop,  or  in 
Milan  by  a  succession  of  tyrants,  the  cathedral  was  left 
unfinished.  When,  in  the  fifteenth  century,  all  over 


THE   PARAGRAPH.  77 

Europe,  the  turbulent,  but  energetic  liberties  of  the  people 
were  suppressed,  the  building  of  cathedrals  ceased. 

CHARLES  ELIOT  NORTON  : 
Notes  of  Travel  and  Study  in  Italy. 

After  all  has  been  said  that  can  be  said  of  the  horrors 
of  war,  it  still  remains  that  there  are  certain  circumstances 
under  which  war  is  not  only  justifiable,  but  absolutely 
necessary.  There  are  times  when  a  people  have  been 
crushed  in  all  of  the  rights  of  a  nation  which  God  has 
given  to  them;  when  all  measures  of  redress  for  their 
wrongs  have  been  spurned  and  contemned.  Beyond  that 
they  see  the  gleam  of  freedom.  Then  it  is  that  they  are 
prompted  to  bare  their  breasts  to  the  lightning  and  place 
their  reliance,  through  God,  in  the  argument  of  force.  No 
nation  can  see  its  people  bow  their  heads  in  shame  before 
the  rest  of  the  people  of  the  world.  The  nation's  honoris 
the  nation's  soul  ;  it  is  the  nation's  spirit  and  must  be 
kept  alive. 

JOHN  P.  CHIDWICK  :    The  Spanish- American   War. 

29.     Irregular    Development We    have   described 

some  of  the  more  common  forms  of  paragraph  develop- 
ment. There  are  many  others.  As  has  been  remarked 
before,  the  real  value  of  these  methods  is  to  teach  the 
pupil  to  analyze  his  thought  and  to  develop  it  coherently. 
Outside  of  the  more  severe  forms  of  discourse  para- 
graphs of  these  strict  types  are  seldom  found.  In  or- 
dinary writing  less  formal  types  prevail.  Again,  it  is  rare 
that  a  paragraph  is  developed  by  one  method  only.  If  we 
take  at  random  a  paragraph  from  a  book  or  a  magazine 
we  shall  find  two  or  three  methods  employed  in  the 
same  paragraph,  sometimes  obscure  and  hard  to  classify. 
For  this  reason  and  because  of  faulty  construction  the 


78  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

ordinary  magazine  paragraph  is  a  poor  model  of  para- 
graph development. 

Further",  it  is  to  be  noted  that  many  paragraphs  show 
no  regular  method  of  development,  or  have  even  a  topic- 
sentence.  This  is  true  particularly  of  narration  and 
description,  which  consist  of  a  mere  group  of  facts,  hav- 
ing only  a  time  or  a  space  relation.  In  the  former  the 
paragraph  is  developed  in  the  time  order,  the  relation  of 
sequence  being  the  only  one  which  any  ..sentence  in  the 
paragraph  has  to  another;  in  the  latter,  the  paragraph 
is  developed  in  the  space  order,  and  the  only  relation  of 
sentence  to  sentence  may  be  that  of  nearness  of  place, 
making  a  topic-sentence  equally  unnecessary.  In  some 
kinds  of  informal  discourse  the  regular  development  of  a 
topic-sentence  would  destroy  the  tone  of  the  composi- 
tion. Especially  is  this  true  where  a  light  and  graceful 
conversational  air  is  to  be  maintained,  as  in  the  following : 

i.  What  then?  2.  Shall  I  betray  a  secret  ?  3.  I  have 
already  entertained  this  party  in  my  humble  little  parlor  at 
home  ;  and  Prue  presided  serenely  as  Semiramis  over  her 
court.  4.  Have  I  not  said  that  I  defy  time,  and  shall 
space  hope  to  daunt  me  ?  5.  I  keep  books  by  day,  but  by 
night  books  keep  me.  6.  They  leave  me  to  dreams  and 
reveries.  7.  Shall  I  confess  that  sometimes  when  I  have 
been  sitting  reading  with  my  Prue  —  Cymbeline,  perhaps, 
or  a  Canterbury  tale  —  I  have  seemed  to  see  clearly  before 
me  the  broad  highway  to  my  castles  in  Spain ;  and  as  she 
looked  up  from  her  work,  and  smiled  in  sympathy,  I  have 
even  fancied  that  I  was  already  there. 

GEORGE  WILLIAM  CURTIS  :  Prue  and  I. 


THE  PARAGRAPH. 


EXERCISES. 

\  i.  What  do  you  understand  by  the  development  of  a 
paragraph  ?  Why  is  the  development  of  paragraphs  a  dif- 
ficult subject  to  handle?  Mention  some  of  the  common 
methods  of  development,  and  tell  the  kind  of  discourse  in 
which  each  is  most  commonly  used. 

j  2.  Point  out  the  difference  between  development  by 
repetition  and  development  by  details ;  between  develop- 
ment by  details  and  development  by  examples  ;  between 
development  by  comparison  and  development  by  contrast ; 
between  development  by  cause  and  effect  and  develop- 
ment by  proof. 

—  3.  Bring  to  the  class  a  number  of  paragraphs  selected 
from  the  magazines.  Be  prepared  to  tell  if  each  has  any 
topic-sentence,  and  if  so,  explain  how  the  paragraph  has 
been  developed  from  it.  If  any  of  these  paragraphs  have 
no  topic-sentence,  see  if  you  can  discern  any  logical 
method  of  development. 

,  4.  How  is  a  paragraph  of  simple  narration  developed  ? 
Of  simple  description?  Explain  just  how  the  two  processes 
differ.  Justify  your  opinions  by  bringing  to  the  class^fex- 
amples  of  narration  and  description  taken  from  the  books, 
magazines,  and  papers  that  yon  read  from  day  to  day. 

5-  Look  over  the  following  paragraphs,  and  explain  the 
method  by  which  each  has  been  developed,  indicating 
topic-sentences  when  there  are  any. 

There  are  few  places  more  favorable  to  the  study  of  charac- 
ter than  an  English  country  church.  I  was  once  passing  a 
few  weeks  at  the  seat  of  a  friend,  who  resided-  in  the  vicinity 
of  one,  the  appearance  of  which  particularly  struck  my  fancy. 
It  was  one  of  those  rich  morsels  of  quaint  antiquity  which 
give  such  a  peculiar  charm  to  English  landscape.  It  stood  in 
the  midst  of  a  country  filled  with  ancient  families,  and  con- 
tained, within  its  cold  and  silent  aisles,  the  congregated  dust 
of  many  noble  generations.  The  interior  walls  were  incrusted 
with  monuments  of  every  age  and  style.  The  light  streamed 
through  windows  dimmed  with  armorial  bearings,  richly  em- 


30  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

blazoned  in  stained  glass.  In  various  parts  of  the  church  were 
tombs  of  knights  and  high-born  dames,  of  gorgeous  workman- 
ship, with  their  effigies  in  colored  marble.  On  every  side,  the 
eye  is  struck  with  some  instance  of  aspiring  mortality  ;  some 
haughty  memorial  which  human  pride  had  erected  over  its 
kindred  dust,  in  this  temple  of  the  most  humble  of  all  religions. 
WASHINGTON  IRVING:  The  Sketch  Book. 

An  American  boy,  who  has  received  a  fair  common  school 
education,  and  has  an  active,  inquiring  mind,  does  not  will- 
w  ingly  consent  merely  to  drive  oxen  and  hold  the  plow  forever. 
He  will  do  these  with  alacrity,  if  they  come  in  his  way;  he 
will  not  accept  them  as  the  be-all  and  the  end-all  of  his  career. 
He  will  not  sit  down  in  a  rude,  slovenly,  naked  home,  devoid 
of  flowers,  and  trees,  and  books,  and  periodicals,  and  intelli- 
gent, inspiring,  refining  conversation,  and  there  plod  through  a 
life  of  drudgery  as  hopeless  and  cheerless  as  any  mule's.  He 
has  hopes,  and  needs,  and  aspirations,  which  this  life  does  not, 
and  should  not  satisfy.  This  might  have  served  his  progeni- 
tor in  the  ninth  century  ;  but  this  is  the  nineteenth,  and  Young 
America  knows  it.  HORACE  GREELEY  :  Agriculture. 

v_x\)  ^Energy  is  the  steam-power,  the  motive  principle  of  intellect- 
ual capacity.  \  It  is  the  propelling  force;  and,  as  in  physics, 
momentum  is  resolvable  into  velocity  and  quantity  of  matter, 
so  in  metaphysics  the  extent  of  human  accomplishment  may 
be  resolvable  into  the  degree  of  intellectual  endowment,  and 
the  energy  with  which  it  is  directed.  A  small  body  driven  by 
a  great  force  will  produce  a  result  equal  to,  or  even  greater 
than  that  of  a  much  larger  body  moved  by  a  considerably  less 
"^  force.  So  it  is  with  minds.  Hence  we  often  see  men  of  com- 
paratively small  capacity,  by  greater  energy  alone,  leave  — 
and  justly  leave  —  their  superiors  in  natural  gifts  far  behind 
them  in  the  race  for  honors,  distinction,  and  preferment. 

ALEXANDER  H.  STEPHENS:  Energy. 

Amid  this  mountainous  region  tempests  give  brief  warning 
of  their  approach.  Walled  in  as  these  lakes  are  by  mountains, 
behind  which  the  cloud  gathers  unseen,  the  coming  of  a  storm 
is  like  the  spring  of  a  tiger.  A  sudden  peal  of  thunder,  a  keen 
shaft  of  lightning,  which  cuts  through  the  atmosphere  in  front 
of  your  startled  vision,  a  puff  of  air,  or  the  spinning  of  a  whirl- 
wind across  the  lake,  and  the  tempest  is  upon  you.  So  was  it 
now.  Even  as  I  gazed  into  the  white  mist,  a  heavy  bank  of 
jet-black  cloud  rose  up  through  its  feathery  depths,  unrolled 
itself  as  a  battery  unlimbers  for  battle,  and  the  next  instant  a 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  8 1 

sheet  of  flame  darted  out  of  its  very  centre,  and  the  air  seemed 
rent  into  fragments  by  the  concussion. 

W.  H.  H.  MURRAY:  Sabbath  in  the  Woods. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  story  of  rapid  fatal  extinction  is  dis- 
proved. Many  of  the  accounts  are  explained  by  the  facts  im- 
mediately above  mentioned,  but  treated  conversely.  When  a 
name  of  a  tribe  had  been  adopted,  whether  correctly  or  not, 
and  a  number  of  other  names  of  the  same  tribe  had  been 
abandoned  or  disused,  the  number  of  people  before  reported 
as  belonging  to  all  these  disused  names  was  subtracted  from 
the  total.  So  they  were  considered  to  be  extinct.  Doubtless 
tribes  became  extinct  through  their  destruction  by  the  Euro- 
pean invaders  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  especially  in  Massa- 
chusetts and  California;  but  as  a  general  rule,  the  defeated 
tribes  fled  to  other  regions  of  the  continent  which  were  unoc- 
cupied, and  as  good  for  their  habitation  as  those  they  left, 
and  were  not  "annihilated,"  as  was  the  common  expression. 
Even  when  they  infringed  upon  the  regions  claimed  by  a  body 
of  Indians  occupying  them,  there  was  seldom  difficulty  about 
the  adoption  of  the  weaker  by  the  more  powerful  and  success- 
ful folk.  The  hereditary,  traditional,  and  most  hated  enemies 
of  tribes  were  adopted  mutually,  and  this  fact,  in  addition  to 
those  before  mentioned,  explains  the  disappearance  of  tribal 
names  as  published  by  imperfectly  informed  writers.  The 
tribes,  as  such,  did  disappear  from  their  old  habitat,  and  were 
not  recognized  under  their  former  names,  but  the  people  did 
not  cease  to  exist. 

J.  W.  POWELL:   The  North  American  Indian. 

A  railroad  train  was  rushing  along  at  almost  lightning 
speed.  A  curve  was  just  ahead,  beyond  which  was  a  station 
at  which  the  cars  usually  passed  each  other.  The  conductor 
was  late,  so  late  that  the  period  during  which  the  down  train 
was  to  wait  had  nearly  elapsed  ;  but  he  hoped  yet  to  pass  the 
curve  safely.  Suddenly,  a  locomotive  dashed  into  sight  right 
ahead.  In  an  instant  there  was  a  collision.  A  shriek,  a 
shock,  and  fifty  souls  were  in  eternity ;  and  all  because  an 
engineer  had  been  behind  time. 

6.  Develop  each  of  the  following  topic-sentences,  or 
the  negative  of  each,  into  a  paragraph  of  150  words, 
mainly  by  repetition.  Be  careful  to  add  something  to  the 
thought  in  each  repetition,  and  to  outline  the  paragraph 
before  writing. 


82 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


Science  has  given  us 
practically  all  our  mod- 
ern comforts. 

Women  are  les"s  ready 
than  men  to  break  up 
domestic  and  local  ties 
and  move  to  new 
places. 

Success  in  any  great  un- 
dertaking can  be  ex- 
pected only  by  one  thor- 
oughly interested  in  it. 

The  lives  and  deeds  of 
heroes  are  an  eternal 
legacy  to  the  world. 

"A  thing  of  beauty  is  a 
Joy  forever." 


6.  Announcements    of    new 

discoveries  in  science 
are  now  so  frequent 
that  we  have  ceased  to 
marvel  at  them. 

7.  The  strength  of  a  nation 

is  in  its  young  men. 

8.  A    "crank"     is     always 

needed  to  make  things 
go. 

9.  The    growing    cordiality 

between  England  and 
the  United  States  is  an 
unmixed  good  to  both. 


7.  Develop  each  of  the  following  topic-sentences  into 
a  brief  paragraph,  mainly  by  giving  particulars  and  details, 
but  in  some  of  the  paragraphs  employing  both  that  method 
and  the  method  of  repetition.  /  Be  sure  that  the  particu- 
lars given  are  such  as  will  in  some  way  add  definiteness 
to  the  thought  of  the  topic-sentence. 


1.  In  Ichabod  Crane  Irving 

has  created  for  us  a 
most  amusing  and  in- 
teresting character. 

2.  Jefferson's     inauguration 

was  in  harmony  with 
the  spirit  of  our  repub- 
lican simplicity. 

3.  The  material  resources  of 

the  United  States  are 
as  yet  but  imperfectly 
known. 

4.  I    shall   never   forget    an 

experience  I  once  had 
in  trying  to  cross  a 
swollen  river. 

5.  The  patience  that  an  im- 

will 


hibitwhen  he  goes  fish- 
ing is  remarkable. 

A  naval  officer  is  given 
superior  opportunities 
for  seeing  the  world. 

It  was  not  until  the  next 
day  that  we  realized  the 
destruction  that  the 
storm  had  wrought. 

The  woods  are  a  wilder- 
ness of  gloom  and 
beauty. 

There  is  something  un- 
canny in  the  sight  of  a 
locomotive  headlight 
flashing  through  the 
darkness  of  midnight. 


patient    man    will     ex- 

/  I/ 

^        8.    Develop    the    following  \topic-sentences    into    para- 
graphs by  giving  specific  instances  or  examples. 


THE   PARAGRAPH. 


1.  The    nineteenth    century 

has  been  remarkable 
for  its  scientific  discov- 
eries. 

2.  America's    great    writers 

have  almost  uniformly 
been  men  of  clean  and 
noble  lives. 

3.  Many  of   the  victims   of 

the  Reign  of  Terror 
had  been  prominent  in 
bringing  it  about. 

4.  The    early    attempts    to 

gain  dominion  in  the 
New  World  were  not 
properly  directed. 

5.  The  history  of  the  Turk 

in  Europe  is  one  long 
succession  of  infamies. 


Millionaires  have  often 
been  animated  by  a 
spirit  of  noble  benevo- 
lence, looking  upon 
their  wealth  merely  as 
a  trust  and  not  a  pos- 
session. 

In  former  times  great  dis- 
coveries were  generally 
met  by  popular  oppo- 
sition. 

In  countries  having  a 
great  deal  of  sea-coast 
the  people  have  gener- 
ally been  more  enlight- 
ened than  in  others. 

The  last  years  of  a  well- 
spent  life  are  often  the 
most  serene  and  happy. 


*x-  9.  Develop  the  following  topic-sentences  into  para- 
graphs mainly  by  the  use  of  comparisons  or  contrasts. 
Be  sure  that  the  comparisons  or  contrasts  are  such  as 
make  the  thought  clearer  or  fuller,  more  definite  or  more 
emphatic. 

6.  In  the  time  of  the  Salem 

witchcraft  people  must 
have  been  very  super- 
stitious. 

7.  The  Northmen  were  in- 

stinctively a  race  of 
fighters. 

8.  There   are   gains  for   all 

our  losses. 

9.  Nature   shows   her   most 

beautiful  aspects  in  the 
early  autumn. 

10.  The  birds  of  tropical 
South  America  are 
many  and  beautiful. 


The  coast-line  of  Europe 
is  very  irregular  and 
broken. 

It  is  safe  to  assume  that 
some  of  the  races  now 
uncivilized  will  eventu- 
ally develop  a  civiliza- 
tion like  our  own. 

The  garden  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  high 
hedge. 

Alexander  was  a  very 
successful  commander. 

Youth  is  the  time  of 
growing  strength. 


10.  Develop  the  following  topic-sentences  into  para- 
graphs by  giving  the  effects  of  which  they  are  the  causes 
or  by  giving  proofs. 


84 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


1.  The  farm  was  very  much 

changed  when  I    went 
back. 

2.  Aaron   Burr  was   a  man 

of  insatiable  ambition. 

3.  Willie  had  run  away  from 

school  that  day. 

4.  Monks  lead  isolated  lives. 

5.  Before  the  rain  was  over 

the  river  had  risen  more 
than  two  feet. 

£.  We  can  hope  to  control 
the  sale  of  liquor  only 
by  placing  it  in  the 
hands  of  the  govern- 
ment. 


It  is  now  evident  that  a 
republican  form  of  gov- 
ernment is  the  best  that 
man  has  so  far  devised. 

With  the  advance  in  the 
civilization  of  the  world 
there  has  been  a  cor- 
responding advance  in 
morality. 

The  only  hope  for  the 
good  of  the  world  is  in 
universal  education. 

Effective  legislation  must 
always  follow,  rather 
than  precede,  public 
opinion. 


ii.  Write  narrative  paragraphs  on  several  of  the  fol- 
lowing  topics,  and  show  that  each  paragraph  is  developed 
in  the  time  order. 


1.  A  railroad  trip. 

2.  A  summer  picnic. 

3.  A  deer  hunt. 

4.  A  bicycle  ride. 

f).   A     tramp     through 
country. 


the 


6.   A  visit  to  Mt.  Washing- 
ton. 
,  7.   A  day  in  a  large  city. 

8.  A  house-party. 

9.  A  boat-race. 

10.   A  steamboat  excursion. 


12.  Write  descriptive  paragraphs  on  several  of  the 
following  topics,  developing  each  paragraph  in  the  space 
order. 


1.  A  summer  camp. 

2.  An  old  barn. 

3.  *My  early  home. 

4.  A  department  store. 

5.  Boston  Common. 


6. 

8. 

9- 
10. 


Trout-fishing. 
A  modern  yacht. 
An  automobile. 
A  large  hotel. 
An  art  museum. 


THE  SENTENCE.  85 


CHAPTER    V. 

THE  SENTENCE. 

30.  The  Sentence,  the  Unit  of  Discourse In  the  pre- 
ceding chapters  we  have  made  frequent  references  to 
the  sentence,  and  in  our  written  practice  we  have  used 
sentences  that  roughly  served  our  purpose.    Presumably 
we  all  know  in  a  general  way  what  a  sentence  is  ;  but  we 
may  not  realize  how  essential  it  is  in  the  expression   of 
our  thoughts,  and  to  what  extent  effective  discourse  de- 
pends on  sentence-structure.     The  sentence  is  the  real 
unit  of  discourse,  the  medium  of  intelligent  communica- 
tion, and  therefore  the  vital  element  of  composition.      It 
is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  we  should  understand 
the  principles  of  sentence-structure.      In  this   chapter, 
then,  we  will  consider  this  subject,  leaving  the  matter  of 
sentence-style  for  consideration  hereafter. 

31.  What  a  Sentence   Is Disconnected  words,  or 

words  lacking  definite  grammatical  relations  to  one  an- 
other, may  give  us  ideas,  but  they  do  not  communicate 
thoughts.     The  word  "house,"   spoken  or  written,  will 
serve  to  call  up  a  definite  image  in  the  mind,  but  it  will 
not  give  the  reader  any  knowledge   of  what  the  writer 
thought  when   he  penned  it.     We  may  add  modifying 
words  and  phrases,  such  as  "the  brick  house,"  or  "the 


86  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

brick  house  belonging  to  the  doctor,"  and  yet  the  thought 
is  not  complete.  Something  more  is  needed,  and  we  see 
at  once  that  to  complete  the  meaning  we  must  have  a 
finite  verb  which  shall  predicate  something  definite  about 
the  house.  Occasionally  a  single  word  used  as  an  ex- 
clamation or  as  a  question  serves  to  transfer  thought 
from  the  writer  to  the  reader,  but  even  then  it  is  done 
by  the  aid  of  the  context.  Separate  the  word  from 
what  precedes  or  follows  it,  and  it  would  have  no  mean- 
ing. VA  sentence,  then,  is  a  group  of  words  so  arranged 
with  definite  grammatical  relations  to  one  another  that 
they  convey  a  complete  thought}  Ordinarily  two  parts, 
expressed  or  understood,  are  essential  to  every  sentence, 
—  the  subject,  about  which  something  is  said,  and  the 
predicate,  or  finite  verb,  which  says  it.  To  these  may 
be  added  any  number  of  modifiers.  Such  verbal  forms 
as  the  infinitive,  the  participle,  or  a  finite  verb  in  a  sub- 
ordinate clause  do  not  of  themselves  constitute  a  sen- 
tence. Beginners  frequently  err  in  this  respect,  and 
should  carefully  guard  against  treating  a  mere  collection 
of  words  as  a  sentence. 

Occasionally,  even  among  good  writers,  we  find  groups 
of  words  which  do  not  contain  a  complete  thought  punctu- 
ated as  sentences.  This  is  not  in  accord  with  the  logical 
nature  of  the  sentence,  and  should  not  be  imitated  by  in- 
experienced writers.  It  is  usually  done  for  some  special 
purpose,  but  only  a  trained  writer  is  competent  to  judge 
where  it  is  justifiable.  A  mistake  in  judgment  in  this 
matter  is  shown  in  the  following  selection  from  a  stu- 
dent's paper :  — 


THE  SENTENCE.  87 

Large  and  gray  stands  the  Quaker  meeting-house.  The 
shingles  and  clap-boarding,  weather  beaten  and  rickety, 
showing  not  a  trace  of  paint. 

Here  the  first  period  should  be  a  comma,  for  what 
follows  is  simply  a  participial  clause. 

32.  What  a  Sentence  may  Contain.  —  A  sentence 
must  not  be  a  collection  of  disconnected  ideas.  Every- 
thing that  is  put  into  it  must  have  some  definite  relation 
to  the  thought  involved,  and  whatever  is  necessary  to 
complete  the  thought  must  be  included  as  carefully  as 
irrelevant  matter  is  excluded.  Let  us  consider  a  few 
faulty  sentences  selected  from  students'  papers,  and 
learn  from  them  what  we  should  put  into  a  sentence. 

i.  James  Thomson  was  the  son  of  a  clergyman. 
2.  He  spent  six  years  in  Edinburgh  in  theological  stud- 
ies. 3.  He  tutored  in  private  families.  4.  At  the  age 
of  fourteen  he  wrote  some  blank  verse  which  possessed 
many  merits. 

Clearly  these  sentences  make  unpleasant  reading  as 
they  are,  and  it  is  quite  evident  that  they  are  too  short. 
Considering  sentences  I  and  2,  we  see  —  regardless  of 
what  we  may  know  about  Thomson's  life  —  that  there 
is  a  closer  relation  between  the  two  than  the  form  makes 
evident.  They  may  be  joined  into  one  sentence,  and  to 
this  we  may  add  sentence  3,  assuming  that  his  theologi- 
cal studies  were  the  preparation  for  his  tutoring,  and  in 
this  relation  finding  the  link  that  fastens  the  last  to  the 
whole.  These  four  sentences  reduced  to  two  will  read 
somewhat  as  follows  :  — 


88  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

James  Thomson  was  the  son  of  a  clergyman,  and 
spent  six  years  in  Edinburgh  in  theological  studies,  after- 
wards tutoring  in  private  families.  At  the  early  age  of 
fourteen,  he  had  written  blank  verse  that  was  not  without 
merit. 

33.     Compound   and   Complex   Sentences There  is 

another  important  reason  why  several  short  sentences 
should  often  be  united  into  one  longer  sentence.  The 
child  beginning  to  talk  puts  all  that  he  has  to  say  into 
the  form  of  brief  statements.  Each  of  these  statements 
is  as  important  as  any  other,  so  far  as  he  knows,  and  he 
gives  them  all  equal  value  in  form.  But  in  our  mature 
thinking  and  speech  we  continually  make  nice  distinc- 
tions between  the  value  of  one  thought  and  another. 
According  to  the  degree  in  which  we  are  able  to  express 
these  distinctions,  do  we  attain  accuracy  in  the  use  of 
language.  Certainly,  if  we  do  not  recognize  such  differ- 
ences in  value,  our  thinking  will  hardly  be  clear  and 
exact  enough  to  command  the  attention  of  others.  The 
sentences  that  follow  illustrate  this  defect. 

i .  These  books  increased  his  fame,  but  did  not  make  him 
prosperous.  2.  The  reason  of  it  was  because  he  had  de- 
pended upon  the  courts.  3.  He  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
queen  in  1593  asking  for  help. 

In  reading  this  paragraph  we  feel  at  once  that  the 
writer  had  no  sense  of  proportion  or  relative  value.  Sen- 
tence 2  is  properly  a  part  of  sentence  I,  since  it  gives 
the  reason  for  the  second  part  of  sentence  i,  and  should, 
therefore,  be  a  modifying  clause.  Sentence  3  as  it 


THE  SENTENCE.  89 

stands  is  isolated,  and  seems  to  have  no  dependence 
upon  what  precedes,  though  in  reality  it  follows  as  effect 
from  what  goes  before  it  as  a  cause.  If,  then,  we  re- 
write these  sentences,  making  the  proper  distinctions  in 
thought,  we  shall  have  something  like  this  :  — 

These  books  made  him  famous,  but  they  did  not  make 
him  prosperous,  since  he  had  depended  upon  the  courts.  In 
1593  he  was  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  writing  to  the 
queen  for  help. 

In  the  re-written  form  it  will  be  noted  that  sentences 
i  and  2  have  been  united,  the  relation  of  the  latter  to 
the  former  being  that  of  subordination,  and  the  union  of 
the  two  making  what  is  called  a  complex  sentence,  that 
is,  a  simple  sentence  with  a  subordinate  clause  added. 

Frequently  clauses  of  equal  value  are  united  into  what 
is  called  a  compound  sentence,  that  is,  two  or  more  simple 
or  complex  sentences  connected  by  a  coordinate  con- 
junction. It  is  often  difficult  to  determine  whether  two 
statements  should  be  so  united  or  should  be  separate 
sentences.  The  following  selection  is  faulty,  because 
the  writer  did  not  take  sufficient  care  in  joining  like  and 
related  thoughts. 

i.  The  poem  "Winter,"  in  blank  verse,  brought  him 
three  guineas  through  the  sale  of  the  copyright.  2.  This 
poem  attracted  much  attention,  and  thus  he  was  fairly 
started  in  his  literary  career,  as  his  poems  sold  readily  and 
were  at  that  time  much  appreciated. 

It  is  evident  not  only  that  the  first  sentence  and. the 
first  clause  of  the  second  are  so  closely  related  in  mean- 


90  COMPOSITION  ANt  RHETORIC. 

ing  that  they  should  be  put  together  into  one  sentence, 
but  also  that  the  remainder  of  the  second  sentence  is  so 
much  in  the  nature  of  a  result  of  what  precedes  that  it 
should  be  put  into  a  sentence  by  itself.  Observe  that 
the  thought  of  the  first  part  of  the  second  sentence  is 
not  subordinate  to  what  goes  before  it,  but  of  equal  rank. 
Re-writing,  and  giving  to  each  thought  its  proper  rela 
tion  and  value,  we  shall  have  :  — 

The  poem  "  Winter,"  in  blank  verse,  brought  him  three 
guineas  through  the  sale  of  the  copyright,  and  attracted 
much  attention.  Thus  he  was  fairly  started  in  his  literary 
career,  as  his  poems  sold  readily,  and  were  at  that  time 
much  appreciated. 

34.     Subordination   in   the   Complex  Sentence We 

have  seen  that  the  thought  of  the  paragraph  is  usually 
related  in  some  definite  way  to  the  thought  of  some  one 
sentence  in  the  paragraph  to  which  the  other  sentences 
are  more  or  less  subordinate.  This  in  a  general  way  is 
true  also  of  the  complex  sentence  ;  it  subordinates  one  or 
more  clauses  to  a  more  important  one.  Let  us  take  two 
clauses  having  close  relation  to  each  other,  and  discuss 
different  possible  arrangements  of  them. 

a.  He  gave  up  the  attack  on  the  fort.  b.  He  had  be- 
come assured  of  its  futility. 

1.  He  had  become  assured  of  the  futility  of  the  attack 
on  the  fort,  and  gave  it  up. 

2.  Having  become  assured  of  the  futility  of  the  attack 
on  the  fort,  he  gave  it  up. 

3.  He  gave  up  the  attack  on  the  fort  when  he  had 
become  assured  of  its  futility. 


THE   SENTENCE.  91 

Just  what  is  tne  best  form  for  any  sentence  must 
always  depend  largely  upon  the  context,  and  we  will  not 
attempt  to  decide  in  this  case  ;  but  we  can  profitably 
consider  the  different  effects  of  the  several  forms. 
The  original  arrangement  in  two  separate  sentences  is 
not  to  be  tolerated.  Sentence  I  makes  the  hopelessness 
of  the  attack  on  the  fort  the  thing  of  most  importance, 
and  the  second  coordinate  clause  merely  emphasizes  that 
hopelessness.  In  sentence  2  the  first  clause  is  subordi- 
nate, rather  than  coordinate  as  in  the  preceding,  and  be- 
cause of  this  subordination  it  expresses  a  reason  for  the 
direct  predication  not  manifest  in  the  insistent  hopeless- 
ness of  form  i.  In  sentence  3  the  subordinate  clause 
gives  a  reason  as  before,  but  in  this  form  the  emphasis 
is  on  the  fact  that  the  attack  was  given  up  only  when  it 
had  become  hopeless.  Each  of  these  sentences  says  the 
same  thing,  but  the  understanding  of  that  thing  which 
the  reader  will  receive  is  not  the  same.  The  alteration 
in  meaning  comes  through  the  change  in  the  degree  and 
character  of  the  subordination  of  the  secondary  clause. 
The  following  sentences  found  in  students'  papers  are 
faulty  in  the  matter  of  the  subordination  of  clauses. 

1.  Here  tall  trees  grow    on    either   side  of   the   road, 
nicely  mown  grass  plots  come  between  the  broad  walks 
and  the  fences  which  inclose  well-kept  lawns. 

2.  At   this    Margy's    hold    relaxed,    and    her    strength 
was  totally  exhausted,  for  she  had  fainted. 

3.  .He  arranged  his  head-gear  and  gave  his  signal,  but 
the  ball  hit  his  shoulder,  but  fortunately  landed  in  the  arms 
of  the  great  full-back,  who  hit  center  and  gained  five  yards. 


92  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

In  the  first  sentence,  which  is  part  of  a  description  of 
a  village  street,  the  relation  of  the  concluding  clause  to 
the  preceding,  whether  subordinate  or  coordinate,  is  not 
at  once  clear.  The  subject  matter  of  the  clause  sug- 
gests the  coordinate  relation,  but  the  relative  which  is 
a  subordinate  connective.  Again,  the  word  and  seems 
at  first  to  connect  a  new  coordinate  clause  to  the  pre- 
ceding instead  of  merely  joining  the  nouns  walks  and 
fences.  In  re-writing  this  we  must  bear  in  mind  that 
the  degree  of  subordination  which  the  grammatical 
structure  indicates  must  be  that  which  the  subordina- 
tion of  thought  requires.  Here  the  concluding  clause 
seems  to  be  quite  as  important  as  those  preceding,  and 
there  should  be  no  subordination,  the  sentence  re-written 
reading  about  as  follows  : 

Here  tall  trees  grow  on  both  sides  of  the  road,  the 
lawns  are  well  kept,  and  nicely  mown  grass  plots  come 
between  the  broad  walks  and  the  fences. 

In  the  second  sentence  the  subordination  of  the  final 
clause  is  more  clearly  and  unmistakably  faulty.  Either 
Margy  fainted  because  her  strength  was  totally  ex- 
hausted, or  her  hold  relaxed  because  she  .had  fainted. 
Perhaps,  if  we  say  that  her  strength  was  exhausted,  she 
fainted,  and  her  hold  relaxed,  we  shall  have  indicated 
the  proper  relation  between  the  clauses,  but  in  any  case 
the  final  clause  is  not  subordinate  to  the  others.  In  the 
third  sentence  we  have  a  subordinate  clause  within  a 
subordinate,  something  of  not  infrequent  occurrence 


THE   SENTENCE.  93 

and  not  always  easy  to  manage.  Here,  though  the 
clauses  beginning  with  the  conjunction  but  are  not  in 
strictness  grammatically  subordinate,  they  are  so  in 
effect,  while  the  first  clause  should  be  made  subordi- 
nate in  structure  as  it  is  in  thought.  Of  course  the 
repetition  of  the  conjunction  adds  to  the  awkwarclnes^ 
of  the  construction,  but  the  substitution  of  though  for 
the  second  but  will  not  make  the  sentence  satisfactory 
Re-writing  in  such  fashion  as  to  make  the  first  clause 
subordinate  we  shall  have  something  like  this : 

When  he  had  arranged  his  head-gear  and  given  his 
signal,  he  was  hit  on  the  shoulder  by  the  ball,  but  fortu- 
nately it  landed  in  the  arms  of  the  great  full-back,  who  hit 
center,  and  gained  five  yards. 

35.  Sentence-Variety.  —  We  get  pleasure  out  of 
reading  when  each  moment  something  that  we  did 
not  know  or  had  not  felt  before  comes  into  our  con- 
sciousness from  the  printed  page.  When  the  book  in 
'jur  hand  ceases  to  give  us  new  sensations,  or  to  revive 
old  ones  with  new  vividness,  we  throw  it  down.  In  our 
reading,  the  pleasure  of  novelty  may  come  to  us  through 
the  subject  matter  or  through  the  form  of  what  we 
read.  When  it  is  something  more  than  commonplace 
in  the  form  that  holds  our  attention  we  are  less  con- 
scious of  novelty  as  the  source  of  pleasure,  but  it  is 
so  none  the  less  truly.  Monotony  of  sentence-structure 
will  destroy  our  pleasure  in  almost  any  subject,  if  that 
monotony  be  sufficiently  pronounced. 


94  COMPOSITION  A  AD  RHETORIC. 

Philip  Van  Artevelde  lived  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
fourteenth  century.  His  father  was  the  well-known 
Jacques  Van  Artevelde,  from  whom  Philip  inherited  many 
of  his  military  abilities.  He  was  named  Philip  in  honor 
of  Philippa  of  Hainault,  his  godmother  at  his  baptism. 

In  this  paragraph  the  monotony  of  structure  is  not 
so  great  as  is  frequently  the  case  ;  but  each  sentence 
begins  with  the  subject  followed  immediately  by  the 
predicate.  The  subject  of  the  first  sentence  is  included 
in  the  subject  of  the  second  sentence,  and  again  in  the 
pronoun  of  the  subject  of  the  third  sentence.  This  is  a 
fault  very  common  in  the  work  of  young  and  inexperi- 
enced writers,  and  one  against  which  all  writers  have  to 
guard  continually.  A  composition  that  is  made  up  largely 
of  short  simple  sentences  is  more  liable  to  the  defect  of 
monotonous  structure  than  one  composed  of  longer  com- 
plex and  compound  sentences;  since  in  short  simple 
sentences  it  is  difficult  to  vary  the  order  of  subject, 
predicate,  and  object.  Even  compound  sentences  are 
often  little  more  than  disjointed  simple  sentences  strung 
together  by  various  connectives.  .  The  student  should 
make  continual  effort  to  acquire  variety  of  sentence- 
forms  and  ease  in  the  use  of  them.  A  few  methods  of 
varying  the  simple  form  above  are  suggested  here. 

/^i^^c,^-^^ 

i.    At  home  and  abroad  things  were  looking  ominous 
r        for  the  new  reign.  —  MCCARTHY. 

In  this  sentence  a  prepositional  phrase  precedes  the 
subject. 


THE  SENTENCE.  95 


2.    When  an  intelligent  foreigner  commences  the  study 
of  English,   he    finds    every    page    sprinkled    with  words 
A     whose    form    unequivocally    betrays    a    Greek    or     Latin 
origin.  —  MARCH. 

An  adverbial  time  clause  here  precedes  the  subject. 
Adverbial  clauses  of  various  sorts  may  be  so  used,  con- 
cessive, conditional,  causal,  and  others,  and  some  of 
these  forms  are  given  in  sentences  3  to  8  following. 

^       3.    So  far  as   the    nation    at  large  was   concerned,   no 
history,  no    romance,   hardly  any  poetry   save    the    little 
known  verse  of  Chaucer,   existed   in   the   English   tongue 
when  the  Bible  was  ordered  to  be  set  up  in  churches.  — 
SAINTSBURY. 

4.  Had  the  Bible  then  for  the  first  time   appeared  in 
an  English  dress,  the  translators   would   have  been   per- 
plexed and   confounded   with  the  multitude  of  terms.  — 
MARSH. 

5.  That  we  may  not  enter  the  church  out  of  the  midst 
t^  of  the  horror  of  this,  let  us  turn  aside  under  the   portico 

which  looks  towards  the  sea.  —  RUSKIN. 

^  6.  Though  the  cadences  of  Newman's  prose  are 
rarely  as  marked  as  here,  a  subtle  musical  beauty  runs 
elusively  through  it  all.  —  GATES. 

^  7.  If  there  was  any  person  entitled  to  speak  with  au- 
thority on  the  subject,  that  person  was  assuredly  Mrs. 
Dingley.  —  COLLINS. 

8.    As  we  track  Elizabeth  through  her  tortuous  mazes 
^  of    lying    and    intrigue,    the    sense    of    her    greatness    is 
almost  lost  in  a  sense  of  contempt.  —  GREEN. 

Adverb  clauses  may  take  so  many  forms  that  several 
sentences  in  succession  may  begin  with  such  clauses  and 
yet  seem  unlike. 


96  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

**/  9.  The  days  of  creation  ;  the  narratives  of  Joseph  anu 
his  brethren,  of  Ruth,  of  the  final  defeat  of  Ahab,  of  trie. 
discomfiture  of  the  Assyrian  host  of  Sennacherib  ;  the 
moral  discourses  of  Ecclesiastes  and  Ecclesiasticus  and 
the  Book  of  Wisdom ;  the  poems  of  the  Psalms  and  the 
Prophets ;  the  visions  of  the  Revelation,  —  a  hundred 
other  passages  which  it  is  unnecessary  to  catalogue,  — 
will  always  be  the  ne  plus  ultra  of  English  composition  in 
their  several  kinds.  —  SAINTSBURY. 

Sentences  of  this  form  serve  to  mass  a  number  of 
things  which  have  the  same  relation  to  the  verb ;  such 
grouping  saves  words,  and  is  more  vivid  in  effect. 

fy      10.    Luxurious    and    pleasure-loving    as    she    seemed, 

Elizabeth  lived  simply.  —  GREEN. 

/^/      n.    Conspicuous  among  the  Dutch  troops  were  Port- 
land's and  GinkelFs  Horse.  —  MACAULAY. 
i        12.    Certain  it  is  that  a  great  difference  of  character 
•/existed  between  those  Greeks  who  mingled  much  in  mari- 
time affairs  and  those  who  did  not.  —  GROTE. 

Sentences  I  o,  1 1 ,  and  1 2  illustrate  different  ways  of 
introducing  the  adjective  at  the  beginning  of  the  sen- 
tence. This  should  be  done  only  when  the  adjective  is 
one  that  may  properly  be  made  prominent. 

13.  Of  political  wisdom  in  its  larger  and  more  gener- 
ous sense  Elizabeth  had  little  or  none ;  but  her  political 
tact  was  unerring.  —  GREEN. 

The  transposition  of  a  portion  of  the  object  to  the  be- 
ginning of  the  sentence  gives  variety,  since  it  is  unusual, 
but  is  admissible  only  when  that  which  is  transposed 
may  properly  be  made  emphatic. 


THE   SENTENCE.  97 

36.  Sentence-Length.  —  From  what  has  been  s^icl  ot 
sentence  structure  we  are  naturally  led  to  ask  what 
the  proper  length  of  a  sentence  should  be.  A  little 
consideration  will  show  that  no  definite  answer  can  be 
given  to  this  question.  As  the  sentence  must  contain 
all  that  is  necessary  to  complete  the  thought,  its  length 
will  depend  on  the  work  it  has  to  do.  Approximately 
speaking,  we  may  say  that  simple  ideas  will  naturally  be 
expressed  in  short  sentences,  and  that  more  complex 
ideas  and  finer  shades  of  thought  will  require  longer  sen- 
tences for  expression.  Again,  short  sentences  are  ser- 
viceable in  expressing  strong  feeling  and  rapid  action, 
or  in  definitions  and  propositions  which  require  concise 
statement,  and,  lastly,  they  contribute  to  a  vigorous  style. 
Long  sentences  have  the  opposite  uses.  They  give 
•weight  and  dignity,  amplify  topics,  develop  propositions, 
and  express  the  finer  modifications  of  thought.  Each 
serves  certain  purposes  ;  but  a  succession  of  either  long 
or  short  sentences  becomes  monotonous,  and  fatigues 
the  reader.  Good  writers  judiciously  vary  the  length  of 
their  sentences,  as  a  glance  at  books  or  magazines  will 
show. 

As  inexperienced  writers  often  use  too  many  words  in 
expressing  their  thoughts,  and  as  they  have  an  imperfect 
conception  of  what  a  sentence  should  contain,  they  will 
find  it  worth  while  to  practice  brevity.  There  can  be 
no  question  that  the  short  sentence  is  one  of  the  ele- 
ments of  a  good  style,  and  contributes  much  to  vigorous 
expression.  To  acquire  the  habit  of  writing  short  sen- 


98  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC, 

tences  is  certainly  safer  and  more  advisable  for  young 
writers  than  to  attempt  long  and  ponderous  expressions. 


EXERCISES. 

1.  Indicate  the  sentence-divisions  in  the  following  pas- 
sages l?y  proper  punctuation. 

The  preparations  of  a  snow  storm  arenas  a  rule.gentle  and 
quiets  marked  hush  pervades  both  the  earth  ami  sky^here 
is  no  uproar,  no  clashing  of  arms,  no  blowing  of  wind  trum- 
petsfthese  soft  feathery  exquisite  crystals  are  formed  as  if 
in  the  silence  and  privacy  of  the  inner  cloud  chambers^rude 
winds  would  break  the  spell  and  mar  the  process /he  clouds 
are  smoother./ with  less  definite  outlines  and  slower  move- 
ments^ than  those  which  bring  rairuin  fact  everything  is  pro- 
phetic of  the  gentle  and  noiseless  meteor  that  is  approaching,, 
and  of  the  stillness  that  is  to  succeed  it 

JOHN  BURROUGHS  :  A  Snow-Storm. 

Thinking,not  growth  makes  mankind*  there  are  some  who/ 
though  they  have  done  growing, are  still  only  children|the 
constitution  may  be  fixed  while  the  judgment  is  immature/ 
the  limbs  may  be  strong  while  the  reasoning  is  feeblefmany 
who  can  run  and  jump  and  bear  any  fatigue  cannot  examine 
cannot  reason  or  judge, contrive  or  execute ';because  they  do 
not  think  ^accustom  yourself  then  to  thinking^set  yourself  to 
understand  whatever  you  see  or  read»-to  run  through  a  book 
is  not  a  difficult  task  nor  is  it  a  very  profitable  one,to  under- 
stand a  few  pages  only  is  far  better  than  to  read  the  whole  , 
where  mere  reading  is  the  only  objecUif  the  work  does  not 
set  you  to  thinking  either  you  or  the  author  must  be  de- 
ficient, 

ISAAC  TAYLOR:  Thinking  Makes  the  Man. 

2.  Rewrite    the   following    paragraph    in    longer    sen- 
tences, giving  careful  attention   to   the  proper  subordina- 
tion of  clauses,  and   to   the   proper  grouping   of  related 
ideas   in    the    sentence.     Be  prepared  to  justify  the  ar- 
rangement in  each  sentence. 

i.  Mrs.  Baker  was  at  that  time  an  eager  young  woman 
She  was  somewhat  tragic.  She  was  of  complex  mind  and 
undeveloped  manners.  She  had  had  a  crude  experience  of 


' 


THE  SENTENCE.  99 

matrimony.  This  had  fitted  her  out  with  a  stock  of  generali- 
zations. These  exploded  like  bombs  in  the  academic  air  of 
Hillbridge.  She  had  become  the  spokeswoman  of  outraged 
wifehood.  Her  husband  had  been  signally  gifted  with  the 
faculty  of  putting  himself  in  the  wrong.  This  was  fortunate 
lor  her.  It  had  given  her  leaving  him  the  dignity  of  a  mani- 
festo. In  the  light  of  spokeswoman  of  outraged  wifehood  she 
was  interesting.  She  was  even  cherished  by  that  dominant 
portion  of  Hillbridge  society  which  was  least  indulgent  to 
conjugal  differences. 

It  found  a  proportionate  pleasure  in  being  for  once  able  to 
feast  openly  on  a  dish  liberally  seasoned  with  the  outrageous. 
This  endeared  Mrs.  Baker  to  the  university  ladies.  In  Hill- 
bridge  misfortune  was  still  regarded  as  a  visitation.  It  was 
designed,  as  they  thought,  to  put  people  in  their  proper  place, 
and  make  them  feel  the  superiority  of  their  neighbors.  To 
Mrs.  Baker,  however,  they  accorded  more  than  usual  liberty 
of  speech  and  action.  The  young  woman  so  privileged  had  a 
kind  of  personal  shyness.  She  had  also  intellectual  audacity. 
This  was  like  a  reflected  impulse  of  coquetry.  One  felt  that 
if  she  had  been  prettier  she  would  have  had  emotions  instead 
of  ideas. 

3.  Write  sentences  having  the  forms  of  those  numbered 
i  to  Ik  in,  section  3^,  illustrating  different  sentence-types, 
making  two  of  each  kind. 

4.  Re-write  each  of  the  following  groups  of  sentences 
in  one  sentence,  bringing  to  the  class  serial  writings  of 
each  group,  showing  different  treatment  in  the  way  of  subor- 
dination of  clauses.     Be  prepared  to  say  which  you  think 
best,  and  to  give  reasons  for  your  opinion. 

^ ^  i.  I  set  out  with  a  complete  distrust  of  my  own  abilities.  I 
renounced  totally  every  speculation  of  my  own.  I  had  a  pro- 
found reverence  for  the  wisdom  of  our  ancestors.  They  have 
left  us  the  inheritance  of  a  happy  constitution  and  a  flourish- 
ing empire.  They  have  left  us  the  treasury  of  the  maxims 
and  principles  which  formed  the  one  and  obtained  the  other. 
This  is  a  thousand  times  more  valuable. 

2.  One  senator  with  the  breath  of  his  eloquence  has  blown 
a  beautiful  piece  of  rhetoric.  It  has  been  resplendent  with 
the  hues  of  the  rainbow.  Another  senator  has  pricked  it  with 
the  sharp  spdar  of  his  sarcasm.  Then  the  senate  has  lapsed 
into  inextinguishable  laughter.  This  has  been  followed  ftie 
next  day  by  a  squall  of  ill-humored  contention. 


100  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 


3.  There  are  those  who  say  that  Congress  rarely  acts  in 
telligently.     It  is  influenced  by  personal  considerations.     It 
is  concerned   with   benefits  for    the  district  or   the  party. 
Those  who  say  this  are  intelligent  observers.    As  they  think, 
Congress  acts  intelligently  only  in  consequence  of  popular 
agitation    and    in   fear   of  it.      This    agitation    occasionally 
amounts  almost  to  a  revolution. 

5,    Which  is  the  more  important  of  the  two  sentences  in 

each  of  the  following  groups  ?  Could  they  be  combined 
into  one  with  better  effect  ?  If  so,  combine  them  in  ac- 
cordance with  your  decision  in  regard  to  proper  subordi- 
nation. 

1.  Sometimes  he  could  see  for  miles  and  miles  over  the 
still,  green  jungle.     In  like  fashion  a  man  on  the  top  of  a 
mast  can  see  for  miles  across  the  sea. 

2.  Night  is  a  dead,  monotonous  period  under  a  roof.     In  the 
open  world  it  passes  lightly,  with  its  stars  and  dews. 

?.    Two  centuries  of  the  play  of  the  sea-wind  were  in  the 
yet  of  the  mosses.     These  lay  along  its  inaccessible  ledges 
and  angles. 

4.  This  may  be  kept  up  through  all  the  sessions.     If  so 
there  will  come  to  Christian  work  of  every  type  a  new  impulse. 

5.  The  beginning  of   the  national  campaign  draws  near. 
A  dense  fog  still  obscures  in  the  public  mind  the  problem  of 
the  trusts. 

j£  The  balloon  was  invented  by  the  French.  For  this 
reason,  perhaps,  they  appear  to  believe  that  it  will  furnish 
the  final  solution  of-  the  navigation  of  the  air. 

6.  What  is  the  relation  of  the  third  sentence  in  the 
following  group  to  the  two  preceding,  and  how  would  you 
express  that  relation  more  definitely  than  in  the  arrange- 
ment here  ?  Re-write. 

i.  It  is  a  purely  nominal  republic,  a  wholly  fictitious 
democracy.  2.  It  is  brutally  governed  by  the  military  oli- 
garchy. 3.  Public  spirit  there  has  grown  very  narrow,  and 
popular  sentiment  has  become  rather  dangerous  toward 
foreigners. 

Which  of  the  two  sentences  following  bears  to  the 
other  the  causal  relation,  and  is  that  sufficiently  pro- 
nounced to  warrant  the  use  of  such  a  definite  word  of 


THE   SENTENCE.  IOI 

relation  as  "  because,"  "  since,"  or  "  as  "  ?  Re-write  the 
two  clauses  indicating  the  relation  and  the  degree  of  re- 
lation you  find  between  them. 

i.  These  people  are  endowed  with  unlimited  power  to 
supply  by  handwork  crude  materials  in  exchange  for  the 
products  of  machinery.  2.  They  stand  waiting  to  exchange 
their  products  with  those  nations  who  will  work  them  into 
the  machine-made  fabrics  they  require. 

Which  of  the  two  sentences  following  is  of  the  greater 
importance,  and  which  would  you  place  first  in  re-writing 
them  to  make  their  relation  clearer  ?  Which  is  general  in 
meaning  and  which  specific  ?  Is  the  generalization  or  the 
specific  statement  more  effective  in  making  the  reader 
realize  the  general  truth  ?  Re-write. 

i.  It  has  already  been  remarked  that  the  traffic  of  the 
Sault  St.  Marie  Canal  now  exceeds  the  traffic  of  the  Suez 
Canal.  2.  From  this  one  may  get  some  idea  of  the  mechan- 
ism of  our  waterways. 


Re-write  the  following  material  so  as  to  give  to  the 
paragraphs  greater  variety  of  sentence  endings  and  sen- 
tence beginnings.  Combine  or  break  up  sentences  as 
seems  to  you  best,  and  be  prepared  to  give  your  reasons 
for  using  the  various  sentence-forms. 

i.  The  United  States  commenced  at  first  with  a  very 
liberal  patent  law.  2.  It  has  repaid  to  the  nation,  by  the 
systematic  and  cordial  encouragement  of  its  great  inventors, 
from  1790  to  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century,  a  thou- 
sand-fold all  its  cost  and  all  its  sacrifices.  3.  It  has  placed 
the  United  States  far  in  the  van  in  all  progress  resulting 
from  scientific  discovery  and  mechanical  invention.  4.  It 
was  recognized  by  Washington  and  Jefferson  and  Madison, 
and  all  the  great  men  of  the  earlier  congresses,  that  this  is 
the  one  case  in  law  in  which  law  must  itself  establish  the 
right  to  property.  5.  Material  wealth  is  acquired  by  gather- 
ing together  the  substance.  6.'  It  is  tangible  and  the  owner's 
right  is  unquestionable.  7.  The  law  does  not  establish  his 
right;  it  simply  protects  his  property  against  unlawful  seiz- 
ure. 8.  It  is  not  the'  same  in  the  case  of  the  product  of  the 
brain,  whether  of  the  inventor,  or  author,  or  discoverer  ;  he 
cannot  of  himself  hold,  or  establish  his  own  possession. 


102  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 


9.  The  law  must  give  him  what  is  recognized  as  a  limited  pos- 
session and  monopoly,  fairly  dividing  advantage  between 
him  and  the  people. 

2.  Our  modern  athletes  must  learn  this  chief,  if  somewhat 
obvious,  lesson  from  Olympia,  if  they  would  not  remain 
barbarians  in  spirit,  amid  all  the  external  paraphernalia 
of  Hellenic  revival.  2.  They  must  strive,  like  the  young 
heroes  of  Pindar,  only  for  the  complete  development  of 
their  manhood,  and  their  sole  prizes  must  be  the  conscious 
,— rtlelight  of  pertectly  trained  powers  and  some  simple  symbol 
of  honor.  3.  They  must  not  prostitute  the  vigor  of  their 
youth  for  gold,  directly,  or  indirectly,  through  division  of 
gate  receipts,  acceptance  of  costly  prizes,  or  coining  into 
money  the  notoriety  that  the  newspaper  press  and  the  tele- 
graph instantly  lend  to  every  form  of  ephemeral  preemi- 
nence.^ 4-  It  is  not  merely  that  the  commercial  spirit 
destroys  all  the  ideal  associations  that  transfigure  the  bare 
physical  facts  of  the  contests.  5.  It  is  that  it  "hardens  a' 
within  and  petrifies  the  feeling."  6.  It  is  fatal,  as  the 
Greeks  learned  in  their  degenerate  days,  to  the  very  object 
for  which  gymnasiums  and  athletic  contests  are  instituted,  the 
harmonious  development  of  the  body  to  be  the  apt  servant 
of  the  mind  in  all  the  affairs  of  life.  7.  It  is  inevitable  that 
where  money  is  the  end  men  will  tend  to  rate  the  end  above 
the  means,  or  rather  to  misconceive  the  true  end,  through 
giving  too  much  attention  to  the  means.  8.  Drugs  will  be 
administered  to  induce  sleep  after  heavy  repasts  or  over- 
training, through  the  need  of  reinvigorating  the  body.  9. 
The  professional  will  usurp  the  place  of  the  amateur,  so 
lowering  the  tone  of  athletic  contests.  10.  Highly  specialized, 
time-absorbing  forms  of  training  will  be  substituted  for  the 
free  and  healthy  play  of  the  faculties  in  leisure  hours,  leading 
to  monstrous  and  abnormal  developments  of  body  and  slug- 
gishness of  mind. 


WORDS.  103 


CHAPTER    VI. 

WORDS. 

37.  What  Words  Are.  —  Words  are  arbitrary  symbols 
which  by  custom    represent  ideas.     By  general  agree- 
ment we   use   them   to    communicate   our  thoughts   to 
others,  but  we  need  not  necessarily  adopt  this  means  of. 
communication.     Often  we  convey  a  simple  idea  by  ges- 
tures or  other  signs  ;  but  if  we  were  confined  to  gestures 
and  signs  alone  we  should  be  very  much  restricted  in 
the  expression  of  our  thoughts.     We  use  words,  because 
in  them  we  have  a  larger  number  and  variety  of  symbols 
which  are  readily  understood.     All  words,  however,  are 
not  equally  serviceable.      Some  from  their  derivation  or 
association  suggest  much  more  to  our  minds  than  others  ; 
that  is,  they  have  greater  thought  or  emotional  value. 
To  be  effective  in  our  writing  we  must  have  as  many 
words    as    possible    at    our    command,   and   understand 
something  of  their  utility,  so  that  we  may  choose  those 
whr^h  best  express  our  thoughts  and  feelings.     To  this 
end  we  may  consider  to  some  extent  how  our  words  are 
made  up,  the  sources  from  which  they  are  derived,  and 
their  thought  value. 

38.  Sources  of  English  Words.  —  The  English  lan- 
guage is  especially  rich  in  the  number  of  its  words  and 


104  COMPOSITION   AND   RHETORIC. 

in  their  range  of  meaning.  They  are  drawn  from  various 
sources  ;  but  two  influences,  mainly,  have  contributed  to 
the  making  of  our  vocabulary.  Primarily  it  is  English, 
drawn  from  Old  English  or  Anglo-Saxon  sources,  to 
which  have  been  added  many  words  from  the  classical 
languages,  introduced  principally  through  the  Norman 
French  at  the  time  of  the  Norman  Conquest,  and  later 
by  scholars  during  the  Revival  of  Learning,  or  since 
that  period.  When  Old  English  became  a  written  lan- 
guage the  people  who  spoke  its  various  dialects  were 
but  little  advanced  in  civilization,  consequently  they 
had  no  great  range  of  ideas  to  express,  and  developed 
but  a  limited  vocabulary.  They  had  words  for  all  the 
simple  family  relations,  such  as  father,  mother,  son ; 
words  for  house,  home,  river  ;  words  for  heat  and  cold, 
light  and  darkness ;  and  these  words  have  remained 
with  so  little  change  that  we  can  often  know  their  mean- 
ings from  their  modern  forms.  Naturally,  words  that 
were  a  part  of  the  language  previous  to  the  Norman 
Conquest,  and  still  remain  in  use,  are  largely  the  simple, 
more  elementary  words  of  our  speech,  —  words  in  which 
we  express  feelings  that  are  common  to  all.  For  com- 
plex thought,  however,  or  for  nice  distinctions  of  mean- 
ing, the  vocabulary  of  our  early  tongue  is  inadequate  ; 
abstractions  and  generalizations  we  must  put,  to  a  great 
extent,  into  the  words  derived  from  Latin  or  Greek 
sources.  But  for  telling  power  over  simple  emotions 
our  native  English  is  most  effective.  The  following  se- 
lection from  Dickens  is  written  almost  wholly  in  the 


WORDS.  105 

vocabulary  of  the  mother  tongue,  and  to  this  is  due 
largely  the  directness  and  vividness  of  its  emotional 
appeal. 

f  There  was  once  a  child,  and  he  strolled  about  a  great 
deal,  and  thought  of  a  number  of  things.  He  had  a  sister, 
who  was  a  child,  too,  and  his  constant  companion.  These 
two  used  to  wonder  all  day  long.  They  wondered  at  the 
beauty  of  the  flowers  ;  they  wondered  at  the  height  and 
blueness  of  the  sky  ;  they  wondered  at  the  depth  of  the 
bright  water  ;  they  wondered  at  the  goodness  and  the  power 
of  God,  who  made  the  lovely  world. 

They  used  to  say  to  one  another  sometimes,  Supposing 
all  the  children  upon  earth  were  to  die,  would  the  flowers 
and  the  water  and  the  sky  be  sorry  ?  They  believed  they 
would  be  sorry.  For,  said  they,  the  buds  are  the  children 
of  the  flowers,  and  the  little  playful  streams  that  gambol 
down  the  hillsides  are  the  children  of  the  water  ;  and  the 
smallest  bright  specks  playing  hide  and  seek  in  the  sky  all 
night,  must  surely  be  the  children  of  the  stars  ;  and  they 
would  all  be  grieved  to  see  their  playmates,  the  children 
of  men,  no  more. 

There  was  one  clear  shining  star  that  used  to  come  out 
in  the  sky  before  the  rest,  near  the  church  spire,  above  the 
graves.  It  was  larger  and  more  beautiful,  they  thought, 
than  all  the  others,  and  every  night  they  watched  for  it, 
standing  hand  in  hand  at  the  window.  Whoever  saw  it 
first  cried  out,  "  I  see  the  star  !  "  And  often  they  cried 
out  both  together,  knowing  so  well  when  it  would  rise  and 
where.  So  they  grew  to  be  such  friends  with  it,  that  be- 
fore lying  down  in  their  beds  they  always  looked  out  once 
again,  to  bid  it  good  night  ;  and  when  they  were  turning 
round  to  sleep,  they  used  to  say,  "  God  bless  the  star  !  " 

CHARLES  DICKENS. 


In  the  following  passages  the  words  of  classic  origin 
have  been  printed  in  italics,  and  you  will  observe  that  in 


106  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

comparison  with  the  preceding  selection  there  is  a  sur- 
prisingly large  number  of  them. 

Viewed  from  the  scientific  standpoint  the  successful  ad- 
ministration  of  tropical  dependencies  presents  a   number  of 
difficulties  which  fall  readily  into  two  classes  —  the  difficul- 
>v    ties  inherent  in  the  nature  of  the  local  conditions  and  those 
^/  J  incident  to  the  imperfection  of  the  instruments  employed;  in 
£tt    other  words,  the  difficulties  involved  on  the  one  hand  in  the 
formulation,  on  the  other  hand  in  the  execution  of  a  policy. 
Unfortunately,  however,  mankind  in  general  refuses  abso- 
lutely to   include  government  administration   among  those 
things  which  are  to  be  considered  proper  subjects  for  scien- 
tific treatment.     So,  in  setting  out  to  examine  some  of  the 
practical  problems  cf  tropical  colonization  we  must  realize  at 
once  that  the  simple  statement  of  the  scientific  difficulties  of 
the  task  falls  far  short  of  expressing  the  magnitude  of  the 
work  in  hand. 

ALLEYNE  IRELAND  in  the  Independent,  July  5,  1900. 

Glancing  over  the  words  in  italics  we  see  at  once  that 
there  are  many  for  which  a  primitive  people,  or  a  people 
not  already  advanced  in  civilization,  would  have  no  use, 
since  they  would  not  have  in  their  thought  the  things 
for  which  these  words  stand.  Such  words  are  scientific, 
administration,  tropical,  dependencies,  inherent y  incident, 
instruments,  involved,  and  perhaps  others.  As  civiliza- 
tion advances  it  demands  new  words  continually,  and 
these  additions  to  our  vocabulary  come  very  largely  from 
the  Latin  or  the  Greek.  These  words,  when  they  have 
come  into  the  language,  are  just  as  much  a  part  of 
it  as  are  those  which  have  been  in  common  use  for 
centuries,  but  they  do  not  quicken  our  emotions  in  just 


WORDS.  107 

the  same  way.  Words  of  classic  origin  are  of  more  fre- 
quent occurrence  in  the  literature  of  thought  than  in 
the  literature  of  feeling.  When  we  see  them  on  the 
printed  page  or  hear  them  spoken,  they  bring  to  mind 
things  that  have  been  a  part  of  our  mental  life  rather 
than  those  that  are  a  part  of  our  experiences  ;  and  words 
influence  us  quite  as  much  through  their  associations 
and  suggestions  as  through  their  definite  meanings. 
/  ,39.  The  Anglo-Saxon  Element.  —  Only  a  small  part 
of  our  English  words  have  been  English  always,  but 
these  few  are  used  much  more  in  ordinary  speech  and 
writing  than  are  the  words  derived  from  other  sources. 
We  will  see  how  a  few  of  them  are  made  up,  so  that  we 
may  use  them  more  intelligently.  Perhaps  you  have 
fancied  that,  if  you  know  the  meaning  of  a  word,  you 
know  quite  enough  to  enable  you  to  use  it  effectively, 
but  that  is  not  true.  The  significance  of  any  word  is 
so  bound  up  in  its  history  and  in  our  experience  that 
probably  it  does  not  have  exactly  the  same  value  for  any 
two  readers.  Below  is  a  list  of  words  with  Anglo-Saxon 
prefixes.  Study  each  group  carefully,  and  define  the 
meaning  of  each //r/fo. 

Abed,  aback,  aboard,  afield,  afloat. 
Because. 

Become,  besmirch,  bestir,  beset. 
Forgive,  forget,  forbear,  forbid. 
Forefend,  foretell,  forestall,  forewarn. 
Mischance,  mismatch,  mistake. 
N-ever,  n-either,  n-one,  n-othing. 
Outlaw,  outstretch,  outward. 


N 


108  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Overspread,  overdo,  overmatch. 
To-day,  to-morrow,  to-night. 
Untruth,  unfulfilled,  unhonored. 
Undertake,  undergo. 
Withstand. 

Bring  to  class  a  list  of  words  made  with  each  of  the 
following  noun  suffixes,  and  say  what  the  suffix  adds  to 
the  word. 


i  .    -ar. 

5.    -en. 

9.    -ling. 

13.    -ship. 

2.    -ard. 

6.    -er. 

10.    -ness. 

14.    -stead. 

3.    -dom. 

7.    -hood. 

1  1  .    -ock. 

1  5  .    -ster. 

4.    -craft. 

8.    -kin. 

1  2  .    -ric. 

1  6.    -wright. 

Now  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  in  writing  we  do  not 
stop  to  think  that  in  one  place  we  should  use  an  Anglo- 
Saxon  word  and  in  another  a  word  that  bears  the  classic 
stamp  upon  it.  Did  we  do  that,  our  writing  would  be- 
come stiff  and  mechanical.  But  a  discriminating  famil- 
iarity with  the  two  elements  in  the  language  makes  it 
more  natural  for  the  word  that  is  associated  with  deep 
feelings  to  come  readily  to  mind  when  it  is  wanted  to 
touch  a  like  feeling  anew.  Let  us  see  whether  in  our 
own  writing,  even  without  this  familiarity,  we  make  a 
distinction  in  favor  of  the  English  word  when  we  have 
subjects  of  a  certain  kind  in  hand,  f  On  one  subject 
from  each  of  the  two  lists  following  write  not  less  than 
one  hundred  words.  When  you  have  finished  find  out, 
with  the  aid  of  a  dictionary,  what  proportion  of  the 
words  employed  in  each  case  is  Anglo-Saxon,  and  be 
prepared  to  state  in  the  class  why  it  is  greater  in  one 
case  than  in  the  other.  \ 


^-^  ^ 

A.  i.  The  budding    of    the  B.  i.  Chinese  diplomacy. 

trees.  2.  Improvements   in   meth- 

2.  Jack  the  Giant  Killer.  ods  of  transportation. 

3.  How  John  learned  to  3.  The  influence  of  the  tel- 

play  base-ball.  egraph      upon      coin- 

4.  Marjory  Fleming.  merce. 

5.  The  day  we  went  fish-  4.   New  illuminants. 

ing.  5.  The    benefits    of    imml 

6.  The  beaver's  house.  gration. 

6.  Dying  civilizations. 

40.  The  Classical  Element.  —  That  portion  of  our 
English  vocabulary  which  comes  from  other  than  strictly 
English  sources  is  so  much  more  complex  and  in  many 
ways  so  much  richer  than  our  native  vocabulary,  that  an 
acquaintance  with  some  of  its  more  important  root  words, 
and  with  the  prefixes  and  suffixes  that  occur  more  fre- 
quently in  it,  is  particularly  valuable  for  any  one  who 
wishes  to  use  the  language  effectively.  Naturally,  one 
can  best  come  to  a  knowledge  of  the  exact  force  of  words 
derived  from  classical  roots  through  a  direct  study  of 
the  Latin  and  Greek  languages  themselves,  but  even  a 
second-hand  acquaintance  with  them  is  worth  while. 
We  will  consider  briefly  some  of  the  various  uses  to 
which  a  single  Latin  root  is  put  when  it  has  been  trans- 
ferred to  our  speech.  Let  us  take  the  very  common  verb 
duco,  meaning  I  lead.  We  have  it  in  the  words  adduce, 
abduct,  aqueduct,  conduct,  conduce,  deduct,  deduce,  duc- 
tile, educate,  educe,  and  many  others.  Now,  taking  the 
nouns  derived  from  some  of  these  words,  which  as  given 
are  mostly  verbs,  we  can  define  them  readily  enough  in 
terms  of  the  original  root  and  its  prefix.  A  deduction 


I  10  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

is  a  conclusion  which  we  have  led  down  from  some 
other  fact,  an  abduction  is  the  leading  away  of  some- 
thing, an  education  is  the  leading  out  of  the  powers  and 
faculties  of  the  one  who  has  been  educated.  Observe, 
too,  that  deduce  and  deduct  are  compounded  of  the  same 
root  and  prefix,  and  yet,  as  we  use  them,  they  mean  alto- 
gether different  things,  although  both  clearly  retain  the 
original  significance  of  root  and  prefix.  This  is  true 
of  other  words  of  classic  origin.  Clearly,  we  shall  be 
helped  in  our  understanding  and  use  of  words  derived 
from  foreign  sources  by  a  study  of  the  way  in  which 
they  are  put  together  in  the  process  of  becoming  part 
of  our  English  speech.  Bring  in  a  list  of  not  less  than 
thirty  words  in  which  the  following  Latin  prefixes  occur. 

a,  ab,  abs  =  from,  away  from. 

ab-hor  =  to  shrink  from. 
ad  =  to. 

The  d  of  this  prefix  is  usually  changed  to  the  sound  of 
the  consonant  following  it  in  the  root,  becoming  then  a-, 
ac-,  af-,  ag-,  a/-,  an-,  ap-,  ar-,  as-,  at-.  This  has  come  from 
the  difficulty  experienced  in  pronouncing  two  dissimilar 
consonants  in  succession  without  an  intervening  vowel. 

ad-here  =  to  cling  to. 
con  =  with  or  together. 

The  n  changes  sound  occasionally,  forming  co-,  cog-,  col-, 
com-,  cor-. 

con-tract  =  to  draw  together. 
dis  =  apart,  asunder,  opposite  of. 

This  changes  to  di-  and  dif-. 

disjoin  =  to  make  the  opposite  of  joined. 


WORDS. 


Ill 


in  =  in,  into,  or,  on.  (It  has  this  meaning  in  verbs  and 
some  nouns,  but  is  a  negative  in  adjectives  and 
other  nouns). 

Changes  to  //,  im-,  ir . 

infuse  =  to  pour  into. 
intra  and  intro  =  within  or  into. 

introduce  =  to  lead  into. 
contra  =  against. 

contradict  =  a  speaking  against. 
ex  =  out  or  from. 

Changes  to  <?-,  ec-,  ef-. 

exhale  =  to  breathe  out. 
ob  =  against  or  out. 

Changes  to  &-,  oc-,  of-,  op-. 

oppose  =  to  place  against. 
post  =  after. 

postpone  =  to  place  after. 
sub  =  under. 

subject  — -  to  place  under. 
re  =  back. 

reject  =  to  cast  back. 
trans  =  beyond  or  through. 

transmit  =  to  send  through. 
de  =  down,  off,  or  away. 

deport  =  to  carry  off. 
circum  =  around. 

circumvent  =  to  come  around» 


112  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  following  list  of  Latin  roots  includes  only  such 
as  are  of  frequent  occurrence.  Every  one  who  wishes 
to  use  the  English  language  effectively  should  be  famil- 
iar with  them.  Bring  to  the  class  a  list  of  not  less  than 
thirty  words  which  have  been  derived  from  them. 

capio,  captum  =  to  receive,  to  take. 

In  most  of  its  English  derivatives  this  has  been  soft- 
ened to  ceive.     Receive,  deceive,  perceive. 

claudo,  clausum  =  to  close,  to  shut,  to  finish. 
disclose,  closet,  clause,  seclude. 

ditco,  ductum  =  to  lead,  to  draw. 

produce,  viaduct,  educate,  conduct, 
fero,  latum  =  to  bear,  to  bring,  to  carry. 

refer,  translate,  infer,  collation, 
gradus  =  a  step. 
gredior,  gressus  =  to  step,  to  go. 

gradual,  progress,  egress, 
jacio  =  to  throw. 

project,  conjecture,  trajectory,  subject, 
porto,  portatum  =  to  carry. 

report,  transport,  deport, 
mitto,  missum  =  to  send. 

permit,  dismiss,  remit,  commit,  omit, 
pono,  positum  =  to  place. 

dispose,  expose,  propose,  posture,  deponent. 
facio,factum  =  to  make. 

fact,  defect,  perfect, 
scribo,  scripsum  =  to  write. 

inscribe,  describe,  prescription,  scripture. 


WORDS.  113 

From  these  and  various  other  roots  words  are  formed 
by  the  addition  of  suffixes  of  different  kinds.  It  will  be 
noticed  that  these  suffixes  do  not  change  the  root  in 
quite  the  same  way  as  the  prefixes.  A  word  ending  in 
the  suffix  -ion  is  a  noun,  and  remains  so  while  it  retains 
this  ending ;  but  a  word  with  the  prefix  de-  may  be  a 
verb,  noun,  adjective,  or  adverb,  as  deduce,  deduction, 
deductive,  deductively.  Bring  to  class  a  list  of  not  less 
than  twenty-five  words  containing  suffixes  in  the  list 
below,  and  be  prepared  to  give  such  definition  of  each 
word  as  will  include  the  meaning  of  the  suffix. 

Noun  Suffixes  —  one  who  (agent),  or  that  which. 

-an.  mathematician,     one    who     understands 

mathematics. 

-ier.  cavalier,  one  who  is  chivalrous, 

-ment.         allotment,  that  which  is  allotted. 
Noun  Suffixes  =  state  ;  condition  ;  quality  ;  act. 

-ence.          opulence,  condition  of  being  opulent, 
-ity.  equality,  condition  of  being  equal, 

-tude.          aptitude,  condition  of  being  apt. 
Noun  Suffixes  ==  small. 

-cule.  molecule,  a  small  mass. 

Noun  Suffixes  =  one  who  is  (objective) ;  that  which  is. 

-ee.  committee,    that  to    which    something   is 

committed. 
Adjective  Suffixes  =  like  ;  relating  to  ;  being. 

-ine.  Alpine,  relating  to  the  Alps, 

-ar.  tubular,  like  a  tube. 

Adjective  Suffixes  =  that  may  be. 

-ile.  ductile,  that  may  be  drawn. 

Adjective  Suffixes  =  abounding  in ;  having  the  quality  of. 
-aceous.      herbaceous,  having  the  quality  of  an 

herb. 

-ous.  mountainous,     abounding     in    moun- 

tains. 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


Adjective  Suffixes  =  having  the  power  of. 

-ive.  decisive,  having   the  power  of  decid- 

ing. 

41.  Comparison  of  the  two  Elements Were  we  de- 
pendent wholly  upon  the  Anglo-Saxon  element  in  oin 
tongue,  we  should  be  able  to  voice  in  but  a  bungling 
fashion  the  refinements  of  thought  and  feeling  that  have 
come  to  us  in  the  complexity  of  modern  life.  Were  we 
deprived  of  the  words  of  our  native  speech,  we  should 
hardly  know  how  to  put  our  more  elemental  emotions 
into  form  to  make  others  feel  them  as  intensely  as  we 
feel  them.  The  words  in  the  first  column  below  are 
Anglo-Saxon,  and  those  in  the  second  column  their  clas- 
sical equivalents.  Which  in  *  each  case  is  the  more 
specific  and  less  inclusive  term  ?  Which  would  gen- 
erally secure  greater  accuracy  of  expression  ?  Is  this 
in  each  case  in  accordance  with  what  you  know  of  the 
source  of  the  word,  or  not  ?  Bring  to  class  sen- 
tences illustrating  the  use  of  one  of  each  of  the  pairs 
of  synonyms. 


1 1 .  Dark,  obscure. 

12.  Crowd,  multitude. 

13.  Sin,  crime. 

1 4.  Bold,  brave. 

15.  Bent,  curved. 

1 6.  Unbounded,     infinite. 

17.  Upbraid,  reprove. 

18.  Belief,  faith, 

19.  Good,  benefit. 


I. 

Show, 

exhibit. 

2. 

Glitter, 

radiate. 

3- 

Slave, 

servant. 

4- 

Hidden, 

secret. 

5- 

Ripe, 

mature. 

6. 

Right, 

proper. 

7- 

Truth, 

veracity. 

8. 

Fair, 

honest. 

9- 

Wish, 

desire. 

10. 

Worth, 

merit. 

WORDS.  1 1  5 

\Jb  In  the  first  of  the  following  selections  a  number  of 
Anglo-Saxon  words  have  been  printed  in  italics,  and  in 
the  second  a  number  of  classic  words  have  been  indi- 
cated in  the  same  way.  Let  us  see  what  effect  it  will 
have  upon  each  of  these  paragraphs  to  substitute,  as  far 
as  possible,  words  of  a  different  origin  for  the  words 
indicated.  Re-write  each  of  them,  employing  classical 
words  for  those  italicized  in  the  first,  and  Anglo-Saxon 
words  for  those  so  printed  in  the  second.  Be  ready 
to  say  in  the  case  of  each  word  whether  the  change  has 
resulted  in  greater  definiteness  or  less,  in  greater  emo- 
tional force  or  less,  in  greater  clearness  or  less ;  and  be 
prepared  with  some  general  conclusion  drawn  from  what 
you  observe  in  these  separate  cases. 

The  English  were  not  running.  They  were  hacking 
and  hewing  and  stabbing,  for  though  one  white  man  is 
seldom  physically  a  match  for  an  Afghan  in  a  sheep-skin 
or  wadded  coat,  yet,  through  the  pressure  of  many  white 
men  behind,  and  a  certain  thirst  for  revenge  in  his  heart, 
he  becomes  capable  of  doing  much  with  both  ends  of  his 
rifle.  The  Fore  and  Aft  held  their  fire  till  one  bullet 
could  drive  through  five  or  six  men,  and  the  front  of  the 
Afghan  force  gave  on  the  volley.  They  then  selected 
their  men,  and  slew  them  with  deep  gasps  and  short  hack- 
ing coughs,  and  groanings  of  leather  belts  against  strained 
bodies,  and  realized  for  the  first  time  that  an  Afghan  at- 
tacked is  far  less  formidable  than  an  Afghan  attacking ; 
which  fact  old  soldiers  might  have  told  them. 

RUDYARD  KIPLING  : 
The  Drums  of  the  Fore  and  Aft. 

Golden  indeed  were  the  expectations  with  which  hope- 
ful people  welcomed  the  exhibition  of  1851,  It  was  the 


Il6  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

first  organized  to  gather  all  the  representatives  of  the 
world's  industry  into  one  great  fair  ;  and  there  were  those 
who  seriously  expected  that  men  who  had  once  been  pre- 
vailed upon  to  meet  together  in  friendly  and  peaceful 
rivalry  would  never  again  be  persuaded  to  meet  in  rivalry 
of  a  fiercer  kind.  It  seems  extraordinary  now  that  any 
sane  person  can  have  indulged  in  such  expectations,  or 
can  have  imagined  that  the  tremendous  forces  generated 
by  the  rival  interests,  ambitions,  and  passions  of  races 
could  be  subdued  into  harmonious  cooperation  by  the  good 
sense  and  good  feeling  born  of  a  friendly  meeting.  The 
Hyde  Park  Exhibition  and  all  exhibitions  that  followed 
it  have  not  yet  made  the  slightest  perceptible  difference 
in  the  warlike  tendencies  of  nations. 

JUSTIN  MCCARTHY  :  History  of  Our  Own  Times. 

42.  Emotional  and  Intellectual  Characteristics  of 
Words.  —  Sometimes  we  are  satisfied  with  making  our 
readers  know  what  we  mean  ;  sometimes  we  wish  to 
make  them  see  with  the  eye  of  the  mind  a  picture  that 
we  realize  vividly ;  and  again  we  may  wish  to  have  both 
meaning  and  visualization  quickened  into  more  real  ex- 
istence by  a  rush  of  feeling.  When  we  have  become 
able  to  do  this  last  somewhat  as  we  will,  we  may  feel 
that  we  have  in  great  part  mastered  what  is  called  the 
technic  of  literary  art.  Robert  Louis  Stevenson  is  re- 
ported to  have  said  that  any  one  who  is  ambitious  of 
acquiring  literary  skill  must  be  willing  to  wait  half  a  day 
for  the  right  word.  Probably  every  writer  who  has 
achieved  like  success  would  confirm  the  remark.  But 
first  we  must  train  ourselves  to  know  the  right  word 
when  it  comes,  or  our  wa;ting,  however  long,  will  not 
avail.  Only  by  years  of  both  reading  and  writing  can  we 


WORDS.  11; 

come  to  an  easy  command  of  a  full  and  rich  vocabulary, 
and  even  then  we  shall  not  write  clearly  if  we  have  not 
learned  what  sort  of  distinctions  between  words  should 
be  made.  Let  us  attempt  a  little  classification  of 
words  in  accordance  with  the  character  of  their  appeal 
to  thought  or  feeling.  In  the  first  column  below  is 
given  a  list  of  five  classes  of  words,  and  following  each, 
a  letter  to  be  employed  in  designating  words  of  that 
class.  In  the  second  column  is  given  a  list  of '  subsidi- 
ary characteristics  of  words  with  corresponding  num- 
bers to  be  employed  in  indicating  words  which  have 
these  characteristics. 

Closely  personal  =  u  Suggesting  images  that  are; 

Concrete  =  w  Univefsal 

Particular  and  "      Primitive 

specific  =  x  "      Local  or  special 

General  =y  "      Scholarly  or  technical 

Abstract  =  z  Giving  meaning  without  image   =  5. 

Let  us  consider  a  few  words  with  reference  to  this 
classification.  The  word  country,  for  instance,  we 
would  mark  ui  (country^)  y  because,  as  soon  as  we 
know  the  meaning  of  the  word,  we  know  it  as  some- 
thing to  which  we  have  some  sort  of  personal  relation  ; 
we  are  told  of  our  country  first,  and  we  should  add  the 
symbol  I,  because,  though  the  image  it  suggests  is  weak 
and  indefinite,  it  is  real,  and  it  comes  to  everyone, 
whether  civilized  or  uncivilized,  cultured  or  ignorant. 
In  like  manner  we  should  mark  father^,  motheiuv, 
birthplace^,  and  many  others.  For  words  that  would 
suggest  images  that  have  to  do  with  the  life  of  all 


Il8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

primitive  peoples,  but  less  definitely,  if  at  all,  with 
those  civilized,  we  should  add  the  secondary  marking 
2  ;  and  for  words  that  would  suggest  images  to  people 
of  some  particular  nation,  locality,  or  occupation  only, 
we  should  add  the  symbol  3.  Words  such  as  ratioci- 
nation would  have  5  as  the  secondary  symbol,  and  such 
words  would  generally  belong  to  classes  y  and  z.  Not 
all  abstract  words  would  have  the  secondary  marking 
5.  Slavery,  for  instance,  would  clearly  suggest  some 
sort  of  an  image  having  to  do  with  the  life  of  practi- 
cally all  primitive  peoples,  and  so  would  have  the  secon- 
dary marking  2.  Now,  in  general,  words  to  which  we 
should  apply  the  symbols  nl  are  clearly  more  fitted  to 
quicken  the  emotions  of  the  reader  than  those  of  any 
other  class,  and  those  to  which  we  should  apply  the 
symbols  s$  are  rather  intellectual  than  emotional. 

When  we  write  we  must  continually  make  a  study 
of  the  appeal  that  the  words  we  employ  will  make  to 
thought  and  feeling.  A  composition  that  is  to  move 
the  sensibilities  must  not  be  written  in  words  that  ap- 
peal largely  to  the  intellect.  We  will  spend  a  little 
time  in  marking  the  following  paragraphs  with  the  sym- 
bols given  in  the  classification  above.  Not  all  words, 
of  course,  will  be  included  in  the  classification ;  but 
nouns,  adjectives,  and  some  of  the  verbs  should  be 
marked.  Come  to  class  prepared  to  justify  the  mark- 
ing of  each  word,  and  bring  a  statement  of  the  number 
of  words  of  each  class  that  you  find  in  each  selection. 
Of  the  twenty-five  markings  possible,  which  six  in  your 


WORDS.  lie 

judgment  cover  the  more  emotional  words,  and  which 
six  the  more  intellectual  ?  Which  of  the  selections 
given  seem.to  you  to  deal  more'  with  thought,  and  which 
more  with  feeling,  and  do  your  markings  agree  with 

this  decision  ? 

2-5*   .  -<*> 

A  comparison  between  Europe  and  America,  as  respects 

the  current  production  of  dramatic  literature  intended  for 
actual  performance,  offers  results  which  reflect  upon 
us  a  striking  national  discredit.  In  Germany,  the  two 
foremost  writers  among  those  now  living  are  writers  for 
the  stage.  The  two  greatest  of  living  Scandinavians  are 
likewise  dramatists.  In  France  there  is  at  least  the  poet 
of  "  Cyranb'  "  to  reckon  with,  besides  the  men  who  have 
passed  away  during  the  closing  quarter  of  the  century. 
Italy  offers  one  contemporary  name  of  much  significance, 
and  the  like  statement  is  true  of  Spain  and  of  Belgium. 
-"Even  England  has  her  present-day  group  of  highly  re 
spectable  playwrights,  men  of  serious  purpose  and  sub- 
stantial performance,  if  not  exactly  writers  of  genius. 
The  works  of  all  the  men  here  mentioned  belong  dis- 
tinctly to  the  literatures  of  their  respective  countries, 
and  in  some  cases  they  constitute  the  best  literature  that 
is  now  being  produced  in  those  countries.  Has  America 
anything  of  the  sort  to  show  ?  piVell,  we  have  Mr.  Bron- 
son  Howard,  and  Mr.  Augustus  Thomas,  and  Mr.  Clyde 
Fitch.  But  who  would  think  of  reckoning  the  produc- 
tions of  these  men  among  the  noteworthy  things  of  our 
modern  literature  ?  The  mere  suggestion  is  an  absurdity. 
We  have  poets  and  novelists  and  essayists  fairly  compara- 
ble with  those  of  the  European  countries ;  but  of  dramatic 
writers,  in  the  European  sense,  we  have  not  one,  nor 
have  we  ever  produced  one. 

Editorial  in  the  Dial,  Jan.  i,  1900. 

Dacier  had  observed  the  blush,  and  the  check  to  her 
flowing  tongue  did  not  escape  him  as  they  walked  back  to 


120  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

the  inn  down  the  narrow  street  of  black  rooms,  where  the 
women  gossiped  at  the  fountain  and  the  cobbler  threaded 
on  his  door-step.  His  novel  excitement  supplied  the  de- 
ficiency, sweeping  past  minor  reflections.  He  was,  how- 
ever, surprised  to  hear  her  tell  Lady  Esquart,  as  soon  as 
they  were  together  at  the  breakfast-table,  that  he  had  the 
intention  of  starting  for  England ;  and  further  surprised, 
and  slightly  stung  too,  when,  on  the  poor  lady's  moaning 
over  her  recollections  of  the  midnight  bell,  and  vowing 
she  could  not  attempt  to  sleep  another  night  in  the  place, 
Diana  declared  her  resolve  to  stay  there  one  day  longer 
with  her  maid,  and  explore  the  neighborhood  for  the  wild 
flowers  in  which  it  abounded.  Lord  and  Lady  Esquart 
agreed  to  anything  agreeable  to  her,  after  excusing  them- 
selves for  the  necessitated  flight,  piteously  relating  the 
story  of  their  sufferings.  My  lord  could  have  slept,  but 
he  had  remained  awake  to  comfort  my  lady. 

GEORGE  MEREDITH  :  Diana  of  the  Crossways. 

Then  Jason  got  out  of  the  cairiage,  and  without  further 
word  or  sign,  swung  down  the  street.  The  doctor  looked 
after  him  until  his  stormy  figure  was  lost  in  the  distance. 
What  thoughts  bearded  the  physician's  respectability  :  Was 
the  city,  so  atrociously  modern,  as  aggravating  to  his  un- 
tamed manhood  as  it  was  .to  Jason's?  Whatever  games 
they  had  played  they  had  generally  won.  And  he  knew  that 
of  all  men  Jason  was  the  one  to  pursue  a  foe  to  the  utter- 
most parts  of  the  earth.  Jason  was  Mosaic  in  his  belief 
of  fair  play,  and  in  his  instinct  of  retaliation.  He  would 
strip  himself  to  pay  a  debt  of  honor  or  of  kindness.  Like- 
wise to  him  vengeance  was  a  law  as  sacred  as  hospitality, 
and  he  could  entrust  it  neither  to  God  nor  man  to  exe- 
cute it  for  him.  The  doctor  knew  that  whatever  his  old 
mate  purposed  would  be  deftly  done,*  and  with  dispatch. 
Far  off,  the  tall  sombrero  waved  above  the  petty  crowd 
and  was  finally  swallowed.  Shaking  off  his  reverie,  the 
doctor  called  his  man  and  hurried  on  his  rounds. 

HERBERT  D.  WARD. 


WORDS.  \  2 1 

43.  A  Large  Vocabulary.  —  It  is  not  enough  that  wo 
have  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  words  that  we  employ 
in  our  daily  speech  and  in  writing  ;  we  must  have  a  large 
vocabulary  to  draw  upon.  Writers  who  use  the  same 
words  often  seem  to  us,  when  we  read,  to  be  repeating 
thoughts  as  well,  and  that  feeling  destroys  our  pleasure 
in  the  reading.  Indeed,  the  thought  of  a  composition 
cannot  be  developed  as  fully  if  the  vocabulary  in  which 
it  is  written  is  a  narrow  one  The  intellectual  poverty 
of  the  writer  betrays  itself  in  his  poverty  of  words,  and 
he  says  less,  perhaps,  than  he  means,  and  seems  to  say 
less  still.  In  the  following,  from  a  student's  paper,  ob- 
serve how  the  repetition  of  the  words  "lived,"  "moun- 
tains," "but,"  "crabbed,"  "thought,"  and  " never, "  give 
the  effect  of  lack  of  substance.  There  are  other  faults 
in  the  composition,  but  that  of  tautology  is  the  most 
serious. 

Old  Tim  Hardy  was  a  miner  who  lived  all  alone  in  a 
little  cottage  up  in  the  Rocky  Mountains.  For  many 
years  he  had  lived  in  this  desolate  region,  eager  to  get 
some  of  the  gold  and  silver  that  the  mountains  contained. 
He  had  searched  often  fruitlessly,  but  would  never  give  up, 
but  day  after  day  he  toiled,  but  in  vain.  His  surround- 
ings had  done  much  towards  changing  his  nature  and  the 
character  of  his  life.  The  happy,  gallant  Tim  of  long  ago 
had  become,  as  time  went  on,  the  hard,  crabbed  old  Tim 
Hardy.  No  one  thought  anything  of  him  and  never  did 
a  kind  word  pass  his  lips.  He  sometimes  wondered  why 
people  never  had  anything  to  do  with  him,  but  he  never 
once  thought  that  it  was  his  own  crabbed  nature  from 
which  they  recoiled. 


122  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Obviously,  then,  we  should  strive  to  obtain  a  large 
vocabulary  ;  for  it  is  only  by  having  an  abundant  supply 
of  words  at  our  command  that  we  can  bring  out  the  fine 
distinctions  of  our  own  thought,  and  understand  other 
writers  who  are  careful  to  discriminate  in  their  use  of 
words.  For  some  people  no  special  effort  to  add  to 
their  stock  of  words  is  necessary ;  but  for  the  majority 
of  us  such  is  not  the  case;  we  must  strive  continually 
to  increase  our  supply  until  our  vocabularies  are  ade- 
quate to  our  needs.  To  this  end  we  should  not  only 
remember  the  new  words  which  we  meet,  but  we  must 
grasp  their  significance  with  clearness  and  accuracy. 

44.  How  to  Increase  our  Vocabulary.  —  There  are 
three  sources  from  which  one  may  hope  to  increase  his 
vocabulary,  —  from  reading,  from  the  conversation  of 
others,  and  from  frequent  writing.  Undoubtedly  a 
varied  and  careful  reading  of  good  authors  offers  the 
best  means  of  securing  a  supply  of  new  words  ;  but  we 
may  add  to  our  store  by  listening  to  the  conversation  of 
intelligent  and  cultivated  people.  From  both  of  these 
sources  we  shall  obtain  many  words  which  we  can  soon 
make  a  part  of  our  working  vocabulary,  by  using  them 
in  our  speaking  and  writing.  Frequent  writing  is  in 
itself  a  most  fruitful  method  of  enriching  our  vocabu- 
lary and  keeping  it  vigorous. 

If  we  do  not  easily  remember  words  and  their  mean- 
ings, we  should  try  to  remedy  the  matter  by  taking 
note  of  all  new  words  that  come  up  in  our  reading,  look- 
ing them  up  in  a  dictionary,  and  writing  their  meanings, 


WORDS.  123 

together  with  some  few  sentences  in  which  they  occur, 
in  a  note-book.  Then  as  soon  as  possible  we  should  use 
them.  We  all  have  two  vocabularies,  —  the  vocabulary 
of  the  words  thac  we  understand  more  or  less  fully  when 
we  see  them,  and  that  of  the  words  that  we  use  our- 
selves, —  a  much  smaller  number.  There  are,  of  course, 
a  great  many  technical  words  of  which  we  need  to  know 
the  meaning,  but  with  which  we  do  not  need  to  be  so 
familiar  that  they  will  come  easily  to  mind  for  our  own 
use.  On  the  other  hand,  technical  words  are  often 
useful  outside  the  literature  of  the  occupation  or  pro- 
fession in  which  they  occur,  and  familiarity  with  some 
of  the  more  common  ones  may  at  any  time  serve  our 
pens  a  good  turn.  And  we  should  remember  that  defi- 
nite efforts  to  use  words  that  are  not  a  part  of  our 
writing  vocabulary  will  result  in  adding  them  to  the  num- 
ber of  our  working  tools.  Remember,  too,  that  we  think 
in  words,  and  that  if  we  lack  words  we  shall,  to  some 
extent,  lack  ideas  ;  for  ideas  are  often  but  the  refine- 
ments and  distinctions  of  meaning  which  are  involved 
in  words  themselves.  Let  us  see  how  a  great  master 
of  English  prose,  John  Ruskin,  uses  words  that  are  not 
those  of  our  every-day  speech. 

But  if  we  seek  to  know  more  than  this  and  to  ascertain 
the  manner  in  which  the  story  first  crystallized  into  its 
shape,  we  shall  find  ourselves  led  back  generally  to  one 
or  other  of  two  sources  —  either  to  actual  historical 
events,  represented  by  the  fancy  under  figures  personify- 
ing them  ;  or  else  to  natural  phenomena  similarly  endowed 
with  life  by  the  imaginative  power  usually  more  nr  less 


124  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

•  under  the  influence  of  terror.  The  historical  myths  we 
must  leave  to  the  masters  of  history  to  follow  ;  they,  and 
the  events  they  record,  being  yet  involved  in  great, 
though  attractive  and  penetrable,  mystery.  But  the 
stars,  and  hills,  and  storms  are  with  us  now,  as  they  were 
with  others  of  old ;  and  it  only  needs  that  we  look  at 
them  with  the  earnestness  of  those  childish  eyes  to  un- 
derstand the  first  words  spoken  of  them  by  the  children 
of  men,  and  then,  in  all  the  most  beautiful  and  enduring 
myths,  we  shall  find,  not  only  a  literal  story  of  a  real  per- 
son, not  only  a  parallel  imagery  of  moral  principle,  but 
an  underlying  worship  of  natural  phenomena,  out  of 
which  both  have  sprung,  and  in  which  both  forever  re- 
main rooted.  Thus,  from  the  real  sun,  rising  and  setting, 
—  from  the  real  atmosphere,  calm  in  its  dominion  of 
unfading  blue,  and  fierce  in  its  descent  of  tempest,  — 
the  Greek  forms  first  the  idea  of  two  entirely  personal 
and  corporeal  gods,  whose  limbs  are  clothed  in  divine 
flesh,  and  whose  brows  are  crowned  with  divine  beauty ; 
yet  so  real  that  the  quiver  rattles  at  their  shoulder,  and 
the  chariot  bends  beneath  their  weight.  And,  on  the 
other  hand,  collaterally  with  these  corporeal  images,  and 
never  for  one  instant  separated  from  them,  he  conceives 
also  two  omnipresent  spiritual  influences,  of  which  one 
illuminates,  as  the  sun,  with  a  constant  fire,  whatever  in 
humanity  is  skilful  and  wise;  and  the  other,  like  the 
living  air,  breathes  the  calm  of  heavenly  fortitude,  and 
strength  of  righteous  anger,  into  every  human  breast 
that  is  pure  and  brave.  '  The  Queen  of  the  Air. 

"Ascertain  "  is  a  word  we  do  not  use  often ;  and  here 
Ruskin  employs  it  rather  than  any  of  its  synonyms,  such 
as  learn,  find  out,  or  discover,  because  to  ascertain  means 
to  make  more  certain,  and  in  this  case  some  knowledge 
of  the  subject  is  presupposed.  "  Crystallized  "  we  use 
even  less  often,  but  observe  how  effective  it  is  here  in 


WORDS.  125 

describing  the  slow  process  of  growth  of  a  legend,  like 
that  of  a  crystal,  not  to  be  seen  or  known  unt'J  com- 
pleted. "Personifying,"  "  phenomena,"  "endowed," 
and  "imaginative,"  are  all  words  of  but  infrequent 
occurrence  in  ordinary  speech  and  writing ;  and  yet  there 
is  no  reason  why  they  should  be  cut  off  from  every-day 
use.  Other  words  that  are  not  a  part  of  the  working 
vocabulary  of  most  people. are  "involved,"  "penetrable," 
"myths,"  "imagery,"  "underlying,"  "dominion,"  "cor- 
poreal," "quiver,"  "collaterally,"  "images,"  "conceives," 
"omnipresent,"  and  "fortitude."  Without  these  words 
Ruskin  could  never  have  expressed  the  thought  and 
feeling  of  this  paragraph  with  such  clear  vividness, 
and  perhaps  he  could  not  have  had  just  the  same 
thoughts  and  feelings  himself.  Further,  if  Ruskin  had 
merely  known  of  these  words  in  a  vague  way,  they 
might  almost  as  well  have  been  out  of  the  language,  so 
far  as  their  being  of  service  to  him  is  concerned. 

We  shall  find  it  worth  while  to  look  for  words  that 
we  do  not  ordinarily  make  use  of,  and  when  new  words 
come  up  in  our  reading  we  should  spend  time  in  tracing 
up  their  origin  in  order  to  fasten  them  in  the  memory. 
The  following  paragraphs  contain  words  that  probably 
are  not  a  part  of  your  serviceable  vocabulary.  Bring  to 
class  a  list  of  those  that  you  do  not  use  readily  and 
bring  also  sentences  that  you  have  written  to  illustrate 
their  use.  Be  sure  that  you  have  made  diligent  study 
of  them  in  the  dictionary,  and  have  come  to  know  with 
sufficient  certainty  the  shades  of  meaning  by  which  they 
differ  from  other  words  of  like  signification. 


126  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

It  is  well  meant,  it  is  bravely  said  ;  and  yet,  is  the  con- 
clusion entirely  sound  ?  I  hardly  think  that  either  the 
great  Apostle  or  the  august  Emperor  would  be  honestly 
gratified  by  the  inscription  upon  their  place  of  sepulture 
of  the  epitaph  made  by  Mr.  Stevenson,  Anno  Domini 
1890  or  so.  These  men  are  among  the  mighty  builders  of 
the  world  ;  their  portion  was  not  failure,  but  transcendent 
success  ;  not  defeat,  but  victory.  But  a  half-truth  bal- 
anced by  its  opposite  moiety  is  robbed  of  half  its  glory ; 
and  what  becomes  of  the  work  of  art  under  these  circum- 
stances ?  And  the  artist  is  bound  to  work  within  condi- 
tions imposed  upon  him  from  without.  Moreover, 
Stevenson  was  far  too  acute  a  logician  not  to  look,  when 
it  suited  his  purpose,  upon  both  sides  of  the  shield ;  and 
in  his  Fables  he  gives  both  obverse  and  reverse.  The 
Fables  were  written  at  intervals  during  the  latter  half  of 
his  career ;  and  perhaps,  of  all  the  literary  forms  employed 
by  Stevenson  —  and  he  used  most  of  those  extant  at  one 
time  or  another  —  that  of  the  fable  "  set  his  genius  " 
best.  Here  romance  and  metaphysic,  character  and  wit, 
may  meet  together  in  harmony  and  in  the  realm  that  is 
both  homely  and  ideal ;  and  the  problem  of  presentment 
offers  valuable  opportunities  in  the  matter  of  prose  com- 
position. 

L.  COPE  CORNFORD  :  Robert  Louis  Stevenson}* 

Although  the  outward  appearance  of  the  house  is  unin- 
viting, the  interior  is  warm  and  dainty.  The  odor  of 
delicate  hot-house  plants  is  in  the  slightly  enervating  at- 
mosphere of  the  apartments.  It  is  a  Russian  fancy  to 
fill  the  dwelling-rooms  with  delicate,  forced  foliage  and 
bloom.  In  no  country  in  the  world  are  flowers  so  wor- 
shipped, is  money  so  freely  spent  in  floral  decoration. 
There  is  something  in  the  sight,  and  more  especially  in 
the  scent  of  hot-house  plants,  that  appeals  to  the  complex 
siftings  of  three  races  which  constitute  a  modern  Russian. 

We,  in  the  modest  self-depreciation  which  is  a  national 

1  Permission  of  Dodd,  Mead  &  Co.     Copyright,  1899. 


WORDS.  127 

characteristic,  are  in  the  habit  of  thinking,  and  some- 
times saying,  that  we  have  all  the  good  points  of  the 
Angle  and  the  Saxon  rolled  satisfactorily  into  one  Anglo- 
Saxon  whole.  We  are  of  the  opinion  that  mixed  races 
are  the  best,  and  we  leave  it  to  be  understood  that  ours 
is  the  only  satisfactory  combination.  Most  of  us  ignore 
the  fact  that  there  are  others  at  all,  and  very  few  indeed 
recognize  the  fact  that  the  Russian  of  to-day  is  essentially 
a  modern  outcome  of  a  triple  racial  alliance  of  which  the 
best  component  is  the  Tartar. 

The  modern  Russian  is  an  interesting  study,  because 
he  has  the  remnant  of  barbaric  tastes,  with  ultra-civilized 
facilities  for  gratifying  the  same.  The  best  part  of  him 
comes  from  the  East,  the  worst  from  Paris. 

HENRY  SETON  MERRIMAN  :   The  Sowers}- 


It  is  well,  in  reviewing  the  character  of  Socrates,  to 
mark  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  as  the  moral  and  politi- 
cal circumstances  of  the  times  would  probably  exert  an 
important  and  immediate  influence  upon  his  opinions  and 
character.  The  dark  ages  of  Greece,  from  the  settlement 
of  the  colonies  to  the  Trojan  war,  had  long  closed.  The 
young  republics  had  been  growing  in  strength,  population, 
and  territory,  digesting  their  constitutions  and  building  up 
their  name  and  importance.  The  Persian  War,  that  hard 
but  memorable  controversy  of  rage  and  spite,  conflicting 
with  energetic  and  disciplined  independence,  had  shed 
over  their  land  an  effulgence  of  glory  which  richly  deserved 
all  that  applause  which  after  ages  have  bestowed.  It  was 
a  stern  trial  of  human  effort,  and  the  Greeks  might  be 
pardoned  if,  in  their  intercourse  with  less  glorious  nations, 
they  carried  the  record  of  their  long  triumph  too  far  to 
conciliate  national  jealousies.  The  aggrandizement  of 
Greece  which  followed  this  memorable  war  was  the  zenith 

1  Copyright,  1899,  by  Harper  &  Brothers. 


128  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


of  its  powers  and  splendor,  and  ushered  in  the  decay  and 
fall  of  the  political  fabric. 

RALPH  WALDO  EMERSON  : 

The  Character  of  Socrates,  an  early  essay  printed    in 
E.    E.  Kale's  Ralph    Waldo  Emerson.^ 

45 .  Books  of  Synonyms  and  Concordances:  —  Even 
the  trained  writer  who  has  succeeded  in  making  himself 
the  master  of  a  large  vocabulary  often  finds  that  the 
proper  word  has  for  the  moment  escaped  his  memory, 
and  that  he  must  make  use  of  a  book  of  synonyms,  or,  in 
default  of  that,  a  dictionary.  When  the  right  word  does 
not  suggest  itself,  one  that  is  of  closely  allied  meaning 
will  generally  come  to  mind  ;  and  by  looking  up  its  syno- 
nyms and  perhaps,  if  that  is  not  sufficient,  the  synonyms 
of  some  word  found  among  them,  we  may  find  the  word 
we  want.  But  perhaps  this  word  is  not  one  that  we 
have  merely  forgotten,  but  one  with  which  we  are  un- 
familiar ;  then  we  shall  have  to  see  how  other  writers 
have  used  it.  In  this  the  dictionary  should  give  us  some 
help,  and  if  we  have  at  hand  special  concordances  of 
different  authors  they  may  aid  us  further.  It  is  not 
enough  to  know  of  the  word  that  it  is  used  in  the  sense 
in  which  we  wish  to  use  it.  It  may  be  used  in  various 
other  senses  ;  and  perhaps  some  one  of  these,  in  the  con- 
nection in  which  we  would  employ  it,  would  be  suggested 
to  the  reader  more  vividly  than  the  meaning  we  intend 
to  convey.  All  this  must  be  considered  in  passing  upon 
the  fitness  of  the  word  for  our  use.  Further,  we  should 

1  Permission  of  Brown  &  Co.,  publishers. 


WORDS.  129 

question  whether  the  word  is  in  keeping ;  that  is,  has  it 
been  in  use  in  like  connection,  not  with  the  same  mean- 
ing simply,  but  with  similar  context,  or  has  its  use  been 
such  as  to  suggest  incongruous  thoughts  or  images  ? 
Only  by  such  careful  painstaking  can  we  make  the 
written  word  fully  informed  with  the  thought  and  feel- 
ing that  struggles  in  us  for  expression.  The  great  good 
that  comes  to  us  from  our  training  in  translating  the 
Latin  and  Greek  classics  is  largely  that  of  cultivating 
the  faculty  of  patient  persistence  in  choosing  just  the 
right  word  from  a  number  of  words  that  the  vocabulary 
shows  are  admissible. 

EXERCISES. 

1 .  What  are  words,  and  why  do  we  use  them  ?     From 
what  sources  are  our  English  words  derived  ? 

2 .  Bring  to  the  class  a  written  statement  of  the  character 
of  each  element  of  the  English  language  as  distinguished 
by  derivation. 

3.  Bring  to  the  class  a  list  of  fifty  words  that  seem  to  you 
especially  fitted  for  use  in  the  literature  of  feeling.     How 
large  a  proportion  of  them  are  Anglo-Saxon  ?     How  many 
of  them  would  you   mark   with  the   symbols  of   the  six 
classes  of  words  having  the  highest  emotional  value  as  we 
have  distinguished  them  ? 

4.  Bring  to  the  class  a  list  of  fifty  words  that  seem  to  you 
especially  fitted  for  use  in  the  literature  of  thought.     How 
many  of  them  are  classical  ?     How  many  of  them  would 
you  mark  with  the  symbols  of  the   six  classes  of  words 
having  the  highest  intellectual  value  as  we  have  distin- 
guished them  ? 

5 .  Bring  to  the  class  a  paragraph  that  seems  to  you  an 
effective  example  of  the  literature  of  feeling,  and  be  pre- 


130  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

pared  to  state  the  proportion  of  words  of  the  six  classes 
of  highest  emotional  quality  which  it  contains. 

6.  Bring  to  the  class  a  paragraph  that  seems  to  you  an 
effective  example  of  the  literature  of  thought,  and  be  pre- 
pared to  state  the  proportion  of  words  of  the  six  classes 
of  highest  intellectual  character  which  it  contains. 

7.  Bring  to  the  class  sentences  containing  each  of  the 

in  the  following  groups  of  synonyms,  and  be  pre- 
pared to  state  how  any  word  of  each  group  differs  in 
meaning  from  any  other  word  of  the  group.  A  discussion 
of  some  or  all  of  the  words  of  each  group  will  be  found 
under  many  of  them  in  the  Students'1  Standard  Dictionary. 

To  abandon,  abjure,  cast  off,  forsake,  relinquish,  repudiate, 
surrender. 

To  adopt,  cherish,  keep,  maintain,  retain,  uphold. 

To   abate,  decrease,  diminish,  lessen,  mitigate,  moderate, 
suppress,  terminate. 

Absolute,  atbitrary,  authoritative,  despotic,  tyrannical. 
"Active,  agile,  alert,  brisk,  expeditious,  lively,  spry. 

To  address,  accost,  approach,  greet,  salute. 

Abutting,  adjacent,  adjoining,  bordering,  contiguous. 

To   admonish,  advise,  caution,  censure,  dissuade,  rebuke, 
reprove. 

To  adorn,  beautify,  bedeck,  decorate,  embellish,  ornament. 

Affinity,  consanguinity,  kin,  kindred,  relationship. 

To  affirm,  assert,  asseverate,  declare,  maintain,  protest. 

Agreeable,  acceptable,  grateful,  pleasant,  pleasing. 

Blithe,   buoyant,    cheerful,  cheery,    genial,  joyous,  merry, 
sunny. 

Childish,  childlike,  petty,  trivial. 

Follow,  observe,  pursue. 

Emancipation,  freedom,  independence,  liberty. 

8.  Bring  to  the  class  a  number  of  synonyms  for  each 
of   the    following    words,    and    discriminate    in    meaning 
between  them. 

Abhor,  Allure,  Bevy. 

Abiding,  Anger,  Boorish, 

Absorbed,  Animal,  Blaze, 

Adept,  Apparent,  Brave, 

Admire,  Banter,  Candid, 


WORDS.  1 3 1 

Caprice,  Discordant,  Irritation, 

Character,  Excessive,  Issue, 

Coterie  Excuse,  Knowledge, 

Depression,  Futile,  Listless, 

Delicate,  Guess,  Satisfy. 

9.    Fill  in  the  blank  spaces  in  the  following  with  fitting 
words. 


This  was  probably  the  first  light-point ,-p  toe  -J^f>l  Luther, 
his  purer  will  now  first  decisively itself ;  but  for  the  pres- 
ent, it  was  still  as  one  light-point  in  an  element  all  of  dark- 
ness. He  says  he  was  a/pious  monk;  faithfully,  painfully 
4&*&  workout  the^ulAT  this,  one  high  act  of  his;  but  it 

was  tQ  little  purpose.     His had  not  lessened  ;  had  rather, 

as  it  were,  increased  into  infinity.  The  drudgeries  he  had  to 
do  as  novice  in  his  convent,  all  sorts  of  slave-work,  were  not 
his —^-;  the  deep  earnest  soul  of  the  man  had -A— into  all 

manner  of  black  scruples ;  he  believed  himself to  die 

soon,  and  far  worse  than  die.     One  hears  with  a  new for 

poor  Luther  that,  at  this ,  he  lived  in  fear  of  the mis- 
ery ;  fancied  that  he  was  doomed  to  eternal .  Was  it  not 

the sincere of   the   man?      What  was   he   that   he 

should  be to  heaven?     He  that  had  known  only  misery 

and slavery:  the  news  was  too  blessed  to  be  believable. 

It  could  not  become to  him  how,  by  fasts ,  formali- 
ties and  mass-work,  a  man's could  be  preserved.  He  fell 

into  the  blackest  wretchedness  ;   had  to  wander on  the 

—  of  bottomless  despair. 

THOMAS  CARLYLE  :   The  Hero  as  Priest. 

10.  On  one  of  the  following  topics  write  not  less  than 
one  hundred  words  without  paying  particular  attention  to 
the  phrasing.  Then  look  it  over,  and  give  it  careful  re- 
vision for  tautology,  the  repetition  of  the  same  word  or 
idea.  Bring  original  and  corrected  copy  to  class. 

A  face  to  be  remembered. 

Seeing  the  fair. 

Why  violets  are  blue. 

Politics  as  a  profession. 

Influence  of  machinery  on  the  condition  of  the  laborer. 

The  man  shows  in  his  work. 

Cleanliness  the  chief  agent  of  civilization. 


/ 


PART  II. 

GOOD    USE,    DISCOURSE,    AND    STYLE. 
CHAPTER   VII. 

USAGE. 

46.  The  Necessity  of  Correct  Expression.  —  In  indicat- 
ing the  proper  method  of  developing  the  theme  and  its 
component  parts  no  reference  has    been  made    to   the 
necessity  of  expressing  our  thoughts  in  correct  language. 
Important    as    have    been    the    preceding    suggestions, 
they  are  applicable  to  the  development  of  thought  rather 
than  to  the   expression  of  it  ;  and  they  will  not  a]pne 
suffice  to  make  us  good  writers,  if  we  are  not  able  to 
speak  and  to  write  correct  English.      Correct  expression 
is  the  first  requisite  of  good  discourse. 

47.  What  Correct  Expression  Is For  the  purposes 

of  English  composition  we  may  define  correct  expres- 
sion as  the   use   of  good  English   words   and   phrases, 
employed    in    their    recognized    English  meanings,   and 
combined  according  to  the  English  idiom  ;  in  brief,  cor- 
rect expression  is  synonymous  with  good  English.      It 


134  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

is  not  to  be  supposed  for  a  moment  that  a  writer  of 
English  composition  would  use  Greek,  Latin,  or  French 
for  the  expression  of  his  thoughts  ;  but  many  a  young 
writer  is  tempted  to  display  his  knowledge,  or  piece  out 
his  meager  vocabulary,  by  the  introduction  of  foreign 
words  and  phrases  which  should  have  no  place  in  Eng- 
lish writing.  Further,  there  is  a  prevailing  tendency 
among  writers  of  a  certain  class  to  introduce  into  their 
writing  the  slang  and  vulgarisms  of  the  day.  It  re- 
quires less  mental  effort  to  say,  "  He  got  a  call-down 
from  the  super,"  than  to  say,  "  He  was  reproved  by  the 
superintendent'."  "It  is  awfully  hot  to-day,"  and  "I 
don't  think  much  of  those  sort  of  people,"  are  common 
expressions  ;  yet  they  have  no  recognized  standing  in 
the  language,  and  their  use  cannot  be  too  strongly  con- 
demned. Other  words  and  phrases  are  liable  to  creep 
in,  which,  although  not  containing  the  glaring  faults 
of  those  quoted  above,  are  open  to  criticism.  To  in- 
sure correct  expression  it  is  evident  that  we  must  have 
sonic  test  of  what  is  good  English,  some  standard  by 
which  we  may  gauge  our  words  and  phrases. 

48.    Good  Use,  the  Standard If  to  be  understood  is 

a  writer's  first  object,  as  it  should  be,  his  language  must 
be  such  that  his  readers  will  understand  it  as  he  under- 
stands it.  Accordingly  he  must  use  words  that  are 
familiar  to  the  readers  of  to-day,  rather  than  words  of 
the  fourteenth  or  fifteenth  centuries  ;  his  words  must 
be  those  that  are  common  to  the  English-speaking 
world ;  and,  finally,  his  language  must  be  that  of  intelli- 


USAGE.  135 

gent  and  cultivated  people.  The  same  reasons  that 
prevent  a  writer  of  English  from  employing  Greek  and 
Latin  phrases  are  of  equal  weight  in  prohibiting  the 
use  of  any  expression  that  is  not  in  GOOD  USE.  GOOD 
USE  is,  then,  the  test  of  good  English. 

49.  What  Good  Use  Is As  we  have  before  learned, 

words    are    but    arbitrary    symbols    representing  ideas, 
and  have  only  the  meanings  which  usage  gives  them. 
These  meanings  are  subject  to  continual  variation.     Our 
language  itself  is  not  fixed,  but  is  perpetually  changing 
and  enlarging  ;  new  words  are  coming  into  use,  and  old 
words  are  becoming  obsolete.     The    language    of    any 
period   is   regulated    by   the   cultivated   people   of   that 
time.     Accordingly,  a  word  is  in  good  use  at  any  time 
when   it   is   accepted    in    a    certain   sense  by  the   best 
writers  and  speakers  of  that  time,  and  is  so  understood 
throughout  the  country,  or  in  the  language  of  rhetori- 
cians, a  word    is    in   good   use  when   it   is   in   present, 
national,  and  reputable  use. 

50.  Present  Use.  —  Considered  with  reference  to  our 
own  time,  a  word  is  in  present  use  when  it  is  understood 
by  the  people  of  to-day.      It  matters  not  whether  it  be 
as  old  as  "man"  and  "  boy,"  or  as  new  as  ".telephone" 
and  "  motor-man  ;"  it  matters  not  from  what  source  it 
is  derived,  whether  it  be  "  quadruped  "  from  the  Latin, 
"yacht  "  from  the  Dutch,  "taboo"  from  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  or  "mob,"  an  abbreviation.      So  far  as  present 
use  is  concerned,  one  word  is  as  good  as  another  if  it  is 
intelligible  to  the  people  of  to-day. 


136  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

In  these  days  of  change  old  words  go  and  new 
words  come.  Old  names  disappear  with  old  customs, 
or  acquire  new  meanings,  and  new  ideas  demand  new 
names.  With  the  decline  of  chivalry,  astrology,  and 
archery  their  vocabularies,  being  no  longer  significant, 
went  out  of  use,  only  to  be  succeeded  by  those  of 
steam  and  electricity.  Words  that  were  familiar  a  cen- 
tury or  two  ago  are  unknown  to  the  present  generation. 
They  have  become  obsolete,  for  example,  wit,  wot,  and 
wist,  meaning  "know,"  wend  for  "think,"  lief  for 
"beloved,"  comen  for  "come,"  sooth  f or  "truly,"  withsay 
for  "gainsay,"  enow  for  "enough,"  holpen  for  "help," 
twain  for  "two,"  and  anon  for  "soon,"  a  list  taken  at 
random  from  Malory's  "  Morte  D' Arthur,"  a  work  which 
marks  the  beginning  of  modern  prose  in  England. 
Similar  tests  may  be  made  from  any  of  the  writings  of 
two  centuries  ago.  Present  use  prohibits  the  employ- 
ment of  obsolete  words,  or  words  used  in  an  obsolete 
sense,  except  in  poetry  or  in  the  historical  novel,  and 
inexperienced  writers  should  carefully  avoid  using  them 
to  affect  a  literary  style. 

It  is  impossible  to  fix  accurately  the  boundaries  of 
present  use  ;  but  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  any  word 
which  is  understood  by  the  cultivated  people  of  to-day 
may  be  considered  as  belonging  to  the  present  time. 

51.  National  Use.  —  In  writing  for  the  people  at 
large  it  is  necessary  to  employ  words  which  are  not 
only  understood,  but  understood  in  the  same  sense 
in  all  parts  of  the  country.  Evidently  we  should  not  use 


USAGE.  137 

foreign  words  and  phrases,  or  expressions  common  to  a 
locality  or  a  class,  for  in  so  doing  we  narrow  our 
circle  of  readers.  Common  sense,  therefore,  dictates 
that  we  should  carefully'  shun  all  such  words  and 
phrases,  and  aciopt  only  those  words  that  are  in  national 
use  as  fixed  by  speakers  and  writers  of  national  reputa- 
tion. 

i.  Local  Terms.  —  In  whatever  part  of  the  country 
we  go  we  find  terms  peculiar  to  that  locality.  We 
call  them  localisms.  They  are  the  natural  outcome  of 
local  experiences  and  customs,  and  the  number  is  in 
proportion  to  the  exclusiveness  of  the  locality.  In  the 
days  when  there  was  little  intercourse  between  different 
parts  of  the  country  localisms  abounded,  and  new  mean- 
ings were  given  to  old  words,  until  each  locality  had  a 
dialect  of  its  own  ;  but  with  the  advent  of  steam  and 
electricity  the  people  of  all  sections  were  brought  into 
closer  contact,  remote  communities  became  neighbors, 
books,  magazines,  and  newspapers  penetrated  the  farth- 
est corners  of  the  land,  and  dialects  and  localisms  to  a 
great  extent  gave  way  to  a  settled  national  language. 
Some  localisms  still  remain,  and  in  remote  districts 
nourish.  To  what  extent  this  is  true  may  be  appre- 
ciated by  comparing  the  two  selections  that  follow,  the 
first  illustrating  the  speech  of  the  New  England  Yankee, 
and  the  second  that  of  a  Tennessee  mountaineer. 

"  I  seen  this  dog  a  ha'ntin'  round  on  the  dike  a  good 
while  'fore  you  come,"  said  Mar  Baker.  "  I  should  er  give 
him  some  ole  vittles,  only  all  our  scraps  go  to  the  hens. 


138  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC, 

I've  always  thought  he  might  b'long  to  a  carry-all  of  fine 
folks  as  come  ridin'  by  a  week  or  so  'fore  you  brought 
your  things  down.  I  can't  tell  why  I  took  that  notion, 
but  I  did,  and  'Zias  thought  the  same.  But  then  there's 
a  good  many  high-flyers  travellin'  about  to  see  the  Web- 
ster place  an'  so  on." 

"  I  war  a-black  berryin,  thar  bein'  only  a  few  lef  yit, 
an  I  went  fur  an'  furder  yit  from  home ;  an'  ez  I  kem 
out'n  the  woods  over  yon,  I  viewed  —  or  yit  I  'lowed  I 
viewed  —  the  witch-face  through  a  bunch  o'  honey  locust, 
the  leaves  bein'  drapped  a'  ready,  they  bein'  always  the 
fust  o'  the  year  git.  bare.  An'  stiddin  leavin'  it  ter  be,  I 
sot  my  bucket  o'  berries  at  the  foot  o'  a  tree,  an'  started 
down  the  slope  todes  the  bluff,  ter  make  sure  an'  view  it 
clar  o'  the  trees."1 

CHARLES  EGBERT  CRADDOCK  :    The    Witch  Face. 

We  need  not,  however,  go  to  remote  districts  for  our 
localisms ;  we  find  them  to  some  extent  everywhere. 
The  New  Englander  guesses  when  he  thinks,  the  South- 
erner reckons ;  the  former  perks  up,  and  has  a  pesky 
horse,  he  senses  things  when  he  understands  them  ;  he 
hires  a  team,  while  the  Westerner  hires  a  rig.  The  //';/ 
pail  of  the  East  becomes  the  bucket  as  we  go  West, 
and  in  like  manner  a  quarter  of  a  dollar  passes  current 
as  two  bits,  and  so  on.  We  should  not,  perhaps,  expect 
to  keep  our  speech  or  writing  altogether  free  from  local 
terms,  but  we  should  confine  ourselves,  as  far  as  possi- 
ble, to  words  of  national  use. 

2.  Technical  Terms.  —  Just  as  all  sections  have  their 
localisms,  so  all  trades,  professions,  and  classes  have 

1  By  permission  of  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co. 


USAGE.  139 

their  peculiar  terms,  which,  in  the  main,  are  unintelli- 
gible to  the  public  at  large.  Such,  for  example,  are  the 
numerous  yachting  terms,  fore  and  aft,  starboard,  luff, 
jibe,  tack,  and  countless  others.  A  lawyer's  brief  with 
its  legal  phrases,  or  a  physician's  report  of  a  'case,  con- 
veys no  impression  to  the  majority  of  us,  and  the  news- 
paper account  of  a  base-ball  or  a  golf  game  is  almost  as 
obscure  to  the  ordinary  reader  as  it  would  be  if  written 
in  a  foreign  language.  The  use  of  technical  terms  is 
permissible  when  one  is  writing  for  people  who  under- 
stand them,  but  in  ordinary  expression  they  should  be 
used  very  sparingly. 

3.  English  and  American  Terms.  — The  English  and 
the  American  people  have  a  common  heritage  in  a  com- 
mon language.  They  live  in  great  part  a  common  life, 
are  actuated  by  like  ideals,  and  distinguished  by  like 
characteristics.  Nevertheless,  so  different  are  the  cus- 
toms of  the  two  people  that  minor  differences  in  language 
are  bound  to  arise.  Such  is  the  case.  The  Englishman 
knows  nothing  of  motor-man,  lobby,  stampede,  or  cable- 
car,  while  the  American  is  equally  ignorant  .of  stoker, 
luggage-van,  or  fishmonger.  In  England  an  elevator 
becomes  a  lift,  a  druggist  is  known  as  a  chemist,  and  a 
pitcher  is  a  jug.  The  question  of  whether  or  not  we 
should  use  Americanisms  or  Anglicisms  is  one  of  no 
great  consequence.  In  the  few  caser  where  we  are 
called  upon  to  decide,  it  is  safe  to  say,  that,  as  Ameri- 
cans, we  should  use  the  word  that  is  in  national  use  in 


140  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

our  own  country,  otherwise  we  might  be  unintelligible 
to  our  neighbors  and  open  to  the  charge  of  affectation. 

52.    Reputable  Use We  have  only  to  glance  at  the 

newspapers  of  to-day  to  find  many  words,  which,  though 
they  are '  undoubtedly  understood  by  the  majority  of 
readers,  lack  the  stamp  of  approval  from  our  best  writers 
and  speakers.  They  are  in  present,  and  perhaps  in 
national  use  ;  but  they  are  not  in  gocd  use,  because 
they  are  not  in  reputable  use.  The  fault  of  employing 
obsolete,  local,  or  technical  terms  is  not  to  be  compared 
with  that  of  adopting  words  which  are  common  in  the 
papers  and  speech  of  the  day,  and  which  bear  the  marks 
of  illiteracy.  "No  invite  for  Hart";  "The  Bostons 
had  a  cinch  on  the  game";  "The  story  is  a  fake"  \ 
"The  Chinese  are  bluffing"  are  a  few  of  the  expressions 
found  in  a  recent  edition  of  a  daily  newspaper.  Their 
use  cannot  be  too  strongly  condemned.  We  should  be 
careful  that  all  our  words  are  in  good  repute ;  for  reput- 
able use  is  the  most  important  requisite  of  good  use, 
and  is  fixed  by  speakers  and  writers  of  established 
reputation. 

The  use  of  a  word  by  one  author  only  is  not  sufficient 
to  make  it  reputable.  In  vain  Charles  Sumner  pleaded 
for  annexion  instead  of  annexation,  and  Abraham  Lin- 
coln wrote  abolishment  for  abolition.  A  word  is  in 
reputable  use  only  when  a  number  of  representative 
writers  and  speakers  find  it  a  necessary  adjunct  to 
their  vocabulary.  It  is  thus  that  our  language  grows, 
and  new  words  come  into  use.  Most  of  them  die  a 


USAGE.  141 

natural  death,  but  some  in  time  receive  the  sanction 
of  good  use.  Telephone  and  bicycle  were  adopted  as 
necessary,  but  electrocute  and  automobile  are  still  on 
trial.  The  untrained  writer  must  be  willing  to  accept 
words  only  after  they  have  established  themselves  in 
the  language. 

53.  Doubtful  Words. — We  can  be  reasonably  cer- , 
tain  that  the  great  majority  of  the  words  which  we  use 
are  in  good  use,  but  occasionally  it  is  difficult  to  apply 
the  test,  and  we  are  in  doubt  as  to  the  propriety  of 
using  some  word.  In  our  limited  reading  of  reputable 
authors  we  have  not  founcl  it,  and  it  may,  or  may  not, 
be  in  national  use.  The  usual  advice  given  in  such 
cases  is  to  substitute  another  word  of  recognized  stand- 
ing ;  but  if  the  first  seems  to  meet  our  needs  particularly, 
some  indulgence  may  be  allowed.  We  may  have  re- 
course to  the  dictionary,  the  great  storehouse  of  English 
usage,  and  as  a  last  resort  to  our  own  taste  and  judg- 
ment. Good  sense  will  naturally  prompt  us  to  adopt 
the  well-formed  name  of  a  new  idea,  such  as  motor-man 
or  dynamo,  and  to  reject  the  slang  and  vulgarisms  of  the 
day. 

EXERCISES. 

i.  Write  a  brief  theme  on  what  you  think  correct  expres- 
sion to  be,  saying  why  it  is  so  important  in  good  writing. 

Look  over  the  following  passage,  criticise  the  expression, 
and  re-write  it  in  good  English. 

Justus  laughed  in  triumph.  "Oh,  I  tell  ye,  Watt's  way 
up  in  the  pictur's !  He'll  be  a  reg'lar  town  man  'fore  long,  I 
reckon,  dandified,  an'  sniptious  ez  the  nex'  one,  marryin'  one 
o'  them  finified  town  galls  ez  wear  straw  hats  stiddier  sun- 


142  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

bonnets,  —  though  they  do  look  ter  be  'bout  as  flimsy  an'  no- 
count  cattle  ez  any  I  ever  see." 

2.  Define    obsolete    words,    localisms,    and    technical 
terms.     Write  out  ten  obsolete  words  that  you  find  in  the 
poetry  which  you  are  reading.     Make  a  note  of  some  of 
the  more  common  localisms  in  your  section.     Bring  to  the 
class  a  dozen  technical  expressions  from  the  occupation 
most  familiar  to  you. 

3.  Re-write  the  following  passage  in  modern  English  : 

Anon  as  King  Arthur  heard  this  he  was  greatly  displeased, 
for  he  wist  well  that  they  might  not  againsay  their  vows. 
Alas !  said  King  Arthur  unto  Sir  Gawain,  ye  have  nigh  slain 
me  with  the  avow  and  promise  ye  have  made.  For  through 
you  ye  have  bereft  me  of  the  fairest  fellowship  and  the  truest 
of  knighthood  that  ever  were  seen  together  in  any  realm 
of  the  world.  For  when  they  depart  from 'hence,  I  am  sure 
they  all  shall  never  meet  more  in  this  world,  for  they  shall 
die  many  in  the  quest.  And  so  it  forethinketh  me  a  little, 
for  I  have  loved  them  as  well  as  my  life,  wherefore  it  shall 

frieve  me  right  sore  the  departition  of  this  fellowship.     For 
have  had  an  old  custom  to  have  them  in  my  fellowship. 

Consult  the  writings  of  some  author  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  and  bring  to  the  class  a  list  of  obsolete  words. 

4.  Why  is  reputable  use  the  most  important  requisite 
of  good  use?  Make  a  list  of  writers  and  speakers  of  the 
present  day  whom  you  think  to  be  of  established  reputa- 
tion. Tell  why  you  so  regard  them. 

5.  Look  over  the  daily  paper,   note  what  words   and 
expressions  you  find  that  you  think  are  not  in  good  use. 
Make  a  list  of  these,  bring  them  to  the  class,  and  give 
reasons  to  justify  your  opinion. 

6.  When    should   we    adopt    new    words  ?      Doubtful 
words  ?     Take  some  new  invention,  like  the  electric  car 
or  the  automobile  ;  make  a  list  of  all  words  which  have 
come  into  use    in  connection  with    it.     Which   of   these 
words  do  you  think  will  survive  ?     Give  your  reasons. 

7.  What  words  in  the  following  selections  are  not  in 
good  use  as  here  employed  ? 


USAGE.  143 

a.  Now  Gudrun  asked  her  bower-maidens  why  they  sat 
so  joyless  and  downcast     "  What  has  come  to  you,  that  ye 
fare  ye  as  witless  women,  or  what  unheard-of  wonders  have 
befallen  you  ?  " 

Then  answered  a  waiting-lady,  hight  Swaflod,  "An  un- 
timely, an  evil  day  it  is,  and  our  hall  is  fulfilled  of  lamenta- 
tion." 

Then  spake  Gudrun  to  her  handmaids,  "Arise,  for  we 
have  slept  long;  go,  wake  Brynhild,  and  let  us  fall  to  our 
needlework  and  be  merry." 

"Nay,  nay,"  she  says,  "nowise  may  I  wake  her,  or  talk 
with  her;  for  many  days  has  she  drunk  neither  mead  nor 
wine ;  surely  the  wrath  of  God  has  fallen  upon  her." 

Then  spoke  Gudrun  to  Gunnar,  "  Go  and  see  her,"  she 
says,  "and  bid  her  know  that  I  am  grieved  with  her  grief." 

"Nay,"  says  Gunnar,  "I  am  forbid  to  go  see  her  or  to 
share  her  weal." 

Nevertheless  he  went  unto  her,  and  strives  in  many  wise 
to  have  speech  of  her,  but  gets  no  answer  whatsoever  ;  there- 
fore he  gets  him  gone  and  finds  Hogni,  and  bids  him  go  see 
her :  and  he  said  he  was  loth  thereto,  but  went,  and  gat  no 
more  of  her. 

Then  they  go  and  find  Sigurd,  and  pray  him  to  visit  her; 
he  answered  naught  thereto,  and  so  matters  abode  for  that 
night. 

But  the  next  day,  when  he  came  home  from  hunting, 
Sigurd  went  to  Gudrun,  and  spake  — 

"  In  such  wise  do  matters  show  to  me,  as  though  great 
and  evil  things  v^ll  betide  from  this  trouble  and  upheaving, 
and  that  Brynhild  will  surely  die." 

Gudrun  answers,  "O  my  lord,  by  great  wonders  is  she 
encompassed,  seven  days  and  seven  nights  has  she  slept, 
and  none  has  dared  wake  her." 

"Nay,  she  sleeps  not,"  said  Sigurd,  "her  heart  is  dealing 
rather  with  dreadful  intent  against  me." 

Then  said  Gudrun,  weeping,  "  Woe  worth  the  while  for 
thy  death  !  go  and  see  her:  and  wot  if  her  fury  may  not  be 
abated  ;  give  her  gold  and  smother  up  her  grief  and  anger 
therewith  !  "  WILLIAM  MORRIS  : 

The  Story  of  the  Volsungs  and  Niblungs. 

b.  As  thus  the  king  with  his  foresters  frolicked  it  among 
the  shepherds,  Corydon  came  yi  with  a  fair  mazer  full  of 
cider,  and  presented  it  to  Gerismond  with  such  a  clownish 
salute  that  he  began  to  smile,  and  took  it  of  the  old  shepherd 
very  kindly,  drinking  to  Aliena  and  the  rest  of  her  fair  maids, 
amongst  whom  Phoebe  was   the  foremost.    Aliena  pledged 


144  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

the  king,  and  drunk  to  Rosader ;  so  the  carouse  went  round 
from  him  to  Phoebe,  etc.  As  they  were  thus  drinking  and 
ready  to  go  to  church,  came  in  Montanus,  apparelled  all  in 
tawny,  to  signify  that  he  was  forsaken.  On  his  head  he  wore 
a  garland  of  willow,  his  bottle  hanged  by  his  side  whereon 
was  painted  despair,  and  on  his  sheep-hook  hung  two  sonnets, 
as  labels  of  his  loves  and  fortunes. 

THOMAS  LODGE:  Rosalind. 

c.  "I    am  afraid,   Sir,"  said   Mannering,  turning  towards 
him,  "you  may  be  one  of  those  unhappy  persons  who,  their 
dim  eyes  unable  to  penetrate  the  starry  spheres,  and  to  dis- 
cern therein  the  decrees  of  heaven  at  a  distance,  have  their 
hearts  barred  against  conviction  by  prejudice  and  misprision." 

"Truly,"  said  Sampson,  "I  opine  with  Sir  Isaac  Newton, 
knight,  and  umwhile  master  of  his  majesty's  mint,  that  the 
(pretended)  science  of  astrology  is  altogether  vain,  frivolous, 
and  unsatisfactory."  And  here  he  reposed  his  oracular  jaws. 

"  Really,"  resumed  the  traveller,  "  I  am  sorry  to  see  a  gen- 
tleman of  your  learning  and  gravity  laboring  under  such 
strange  blindness  and  delusion.  Will  you  place  the  brief,  the 
modern,  and,  as  I  may  say,  the  vernacular  name  of  Isaac 
Newton  in  opposition  to  the  grave  and  sonorous  authorities 
of  Dariot,  Bonatus,  Ptolemy,  Haly,  Ezler,  Dieterich,  Naibod, 
Harfurt,  Zael,  Tannstetter,  Agrippa,  Duretus,  Maginus,  Ori- 
gen,  and  Argoli  ?  Do  not  Christians  and  Heathens,  and 
Jews  and  Gentiles,  and  poets  and  philosophers,  unite  in 
allowing  the  starry  influences?" 

"  Comm unis  error — it  is  a  general  ^error,"  answered  the 
inflexible  Dominie  Sampson. 

"  Not  so,"  replied  the  young  Englishman  ;  "  it  is  a  general 
and  well-grounded  belief." 

"It  is  the  resource  of  cheaters,  knaves,  and  cozeners,"  said 
Sampson. 

"  Abusus  11011  tollit  usum.  The  abuse  of  anything  doth  not 
abrogate  the  lawful  use  thereof." 

During  this  discussion  Ellangowan  was  somewhat  like  a 
woodcock  caught  in  his  own  springe.  He  turned  his  face 
alternately  from  the  one  spokesman  to  the  other,  and  began, 
from  the  gravity  with  which  Mannering  plied  his  adversary, 
and  the  learning  which  he  displayed  in  the  controversy,  to  give 
him  credit  for  being  half  serious.  As  for  Meg,  she  fixed  her 
bewildered  eyes  upon  the  astrologer,  overpowered  by  a  jargon 
more  mysterious  than  her  own. 

WALTER  SCOTT:  Guy  Mannering. 

d.  And  when  we  made  part  of  a  draft  of  fifty  to  fill  out  the 
Utah  I   took  um  under  me  wing  and  showed  um'how  to 


USAGE.  145 

smuggle  uz  jug  in  the  broad  light  of  day  past  the  searching 
sergeant  of  marines  ;  and  he  took  to  that  handily.  But  —  O, 
a  real  man  o'  war  was  a  wildering  bedazzlement  to  um ! 
'Tvvas  cross-eying  to  um  !  Such  that  he  spent  the  deal  of  uz 
time  a-falling  through  coal-holes  and  hatches  and  ladder- 
ways,  all  by  mistake  —  that  green  he  was  —  and  making 
friends  everywhere  in  the  bowels  of  the  ship  by  ut,  with  tell- 
ing how  once  he  had  risked  uz  life  to  save  the  captain's 
horse  from  being  dry-smoked.  And  I  thought  I  see  me 
way  to  some  special  dispensations  from  old  Tarrant  through 
O'Shay. 

And  I  took  um  a  walk  —  to  rub  off  uz  lustre.  I  showed 
um  the  air-pumps  and  steam-pumps  and  hand-pumps  and 
hydraulicky-pumps,  and  the  fan-gear  and  tiller-gear,  and  turn- 
ing gear;  and  condinsers  and  ice-makers  and  forty  small 
engines  here  and  there ;  with  the  winches  and  capstans  and 
dynamos,  and  ash-hoists  and  shot-lifts  and  railways,  and 
deck-plates  and  hand-wheels,  and  water-tight  doors  and  holds 
and  bottoms — me  telling  um  what  each  and  every  one  was  for. 
And  I  expostulated  to  um  how  the  green-flanged  red-painted 
pipe  overhead  carried  water,  and  the  yellow-flanged  blue  pipe 
carried  steam  from  the  donkey,  and  the  black-flanged  gray 
pipe  carried  pressed  air,  and  the  red-flanged  green  pipe  car- 
ried hydraulicky,  and  the  speaking  tube  painted  yellow,  took 
whispers  all  over  the  ship  ;  and  I  showed  um  twenty  flush 
hatches  and  started  to  tell  urn  what  each  one  was  for.  But 
O'Shay  took  to  drink,  —  saying  that  Heaven  would  forgive  um. 

Well,  I  hauled  off  and  forgot  of  um.  For  I  see  by  the 
signs  that  the  ship  was  to  crawl  away  by  moonlight,  and  me 
to  serve  me  lick  at  the  wheel  at  midnight.  So  I  hove  to  and 
snored  in  me  hammick  between  me  favorite  beams.  And 
there  was  little  Clarence,  forty  feet  below,  lying  boxed  up  on 
the  hard  cement  of  her  outside  bottom,  with  her  inner  bottom 
for  uz  sky  —  not  two  feet  above  uz  nose,  and  uz  feet  agin  her 
vertical  keel  and  uz  head  bang  up  agin  another  vertical  plate, 
called  a  longitudinal. 

CHESTER  BAILEY  FERNALD:  The  Spirit  of  the  Pipe. 

8.  In  the  following  sentences  correct  the  provincialisms, 
colloquialisms,  and  other  faults  of  which  this  chapter 
treats : 

1.  After  being  locked  up  in  the  closet  for  an  hour  Tommy 
began  crying  that  he  wanted  out. 

2.  Nellie  went  to  town  a  hour  ago. 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

3.  Sim  Tompkins  is  the  ornriest,  measliest  man  I  ever  saw. 

4.  He  suspicioned  that  things  weren't  right. 

5.  This  yere  hoss  is  all  the  one  I  have. 

6.  You  go  home  and  tell  your  paw  to  keep  you  there. 

7.  I  don't  remember  of  no  such  house  as  you  tell  about. 

8.  Archie  says  he  wants  a  sure  'nough  wagon  now. 

9.  He  went   by   way  of    the    never-to-be-forgotten    route 
through  the  Chilkoot  Pass. 

10.  The  land  has  been  so  long  untilled  that  it  is  growing  up 
to  sunflowers. 

n.   The  boy  sendeth  one  arrow  to  seek  the  other. 

12.  Mrs.  Harkness  is  a  great  conversationist,  but  her  mas- 
terpiece in  the  way  of  talk  was  her  discussion  of  evolution 
with  Prof.  Mayer. 

13.  I  reckon  that  wolves  are  no  longer  found  here. 

14.  You  will  get  tired  toting  that  all  day. 

15.  Henry  had  a  very  distingue  appearance  as  he  entered 
the  hall. 

16.  The  audience  became  very  much  enthused  during  his 
speech. 

17.  We  had  so  many  apples  this  year  that  we  thought  we 
never  should  get  shet  of  them. 

18.  His  great  ambition  was  to  be  able  to  orate  well. 

19.  John's  father  told  him  to  harness  the  horse  and  start 
for  town  instanter. 

20.  We  could  hardly  understand  the  patois  in  which  they 
spoke. 

21.  That  was  a  parlous  siege. 

22.  The  deer  were  confined  in  a  narrow  draw. 

23.  She  had  hidden  the  meat  in  a  little  cache  at  the  back 
of  the  kennel. 

24.  In  the  course  of  those  sharp  engagements  the  command 
had  somehow  been  licked  into  shape. 

25.  You  knowed  better  than  to  do  what  I  had  so  expressly 
forbidden. 

26.  They  were  terribly  afeared  and  the  captain  was  unable 
to  revive  their  courage. 


PURITY.    BARBARISMS.  147 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

PURITY.       BARBARISMS. 

54.  The  Application  of   the   Laws  of   Good  Use. — 

Though  the  canons  of  good  use  are,  to  a  certain  extent, 
applicable  to  all  the  directions  given  in  Part  I.  for  the 
development  of  the  theme,  these  directions  at  best  are 
indefinite.  We  follow  them  because  they  state  concisely 
the  methods  by  which  the  best  speakers  and  writers 
have  attained  success.  They  bear  the  stamp  of  gocd 
usage  ;  yet  we  might  not  follow  them  and  still  write  cor- 
rect English.  But  in  our  choice  of  words  and  in  gram- 
matical constructions  we  have  no  such  latitude.  Here 
we  are  rigidly  governed  by  the  laws  of  good  use,  which 
are  not  to  be  violated  if  we  are  to  speak  and  to  write 
with  correctness.  Violations  of  these  laws  of  good  use 
in  spoken  or  written  discourse  may  be  summed  up  as 
follows  :  the  use  of  words  not  English,  the  use  of  words 
in  a  sense  not  English,  and  the  use  of  constructions  not 
English.  These  are  technically  known  as  barbarisms, 
improprieties,  and  solecisms,  convenient  rather  than 
arbitrary  terms  of  designation. 

55.  Barbarisms.  —  A  barbarism  is  the  use  of  a  word 
or  expression  that  has  no  good  standing  in   the   Eng- 
lish  language   because   it  is  not  in   present,  reputable, 


148  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

and  national  use.  Obsolete  words,  localisms,  technical 
terms,  foreign  words  and  phrases,  slang,  and  the  com- 
mon vulgarisms  of  the  day,  are  barbarisms.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  enumerate  all  the  varieties  of  barbarisms  that 
we  meet,  but  a  few  of  them  may  be  pointed  out,  more 
for  the  purpose  of  showing  their  character  than  as  an  at- 
tempt to  make  a  complete  classification.  This  will  enable 
us  to  recognize  more  readily  the  common  mistakes  of 
every-day  speech,  and  will  make  us  more  careful  in  avoid- 
ing like  errors.  Of  obsolete  words,  localisms,  and  techni- 
cal terms  enough  has  been  said  in  the  preceding  chapter. 
I.  Foreign  Words.  — Although  the  basis  of  our  lan- 
guage is  Anglo-Saxon,  it  has  been  augmented  by  the 
adoption  of  words  from  other  languages.  With  new 
inventions,  new  arts  and  sciences,  and  new  ideas  bor- 
rowed from  other  nations,  there  have  usually  come  the 
names  by  which  they  were  first  known  to  those  nations. 
Thus,  we  are  indebted  to  the  American  Indians  for  canoe, 
wigwam,  tomakaivk,  and  moccasin  ;  to  the  Spanish  for 
cigar,  ranch,  cargo,  and  stampede ;  to  the  Italian  for 
macaroni,  piano,  and  many  musical  terms  ;  to  the  Dutch 
for  yaclit  and  sloop ;  to  the  French,  Latin,  and  Greek 
for  innumerable  words.  These  words  have  become 
incorporated  into  our  language,  and  may  properly  be 
regarded  as  a  part  of  it.  The  practice  of  borrowing 
from  other  languages,  however,  is  always  hazardous, 
subjecting  the  writer  to  the  charge  of  affectation,  and 
should  be  left  to  authors  of  established  reputation,  who 
may  venture  so  to  supply  an  obvious  need.  The  fre- 


PURITY.    BARBARISMS.  149 

quent  use  of  hackneyed  foreign  expressions,  chiefly 
French,  by  some  writers  of  the  day  is  to  be  especially 
condemned.  The  author  whose  events  pass  off  with 
fclat ;  who  talks  of  affaires  d' amour  ;  who  does  this  or 
that  by  a  coup  ;  who  takes  the  metier  of  a  man  ;  whose 
men  are  blase,  and  whose  women  are  en  grande  toilette, 
—  convicts  himself  of  affectation,  and  declares  himself 
unable  to  command  the  resources  of  his  own  tongue. 
Happily  this  fault  is  not  prevalent  among  pupils,  and 
little  need  be  said  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  now  and 
then  a  theme- writer,  with  a  smattering  of  a  foreign 
tongue  puts  into  his  composition  some  worn-out  phrase 
under  the  impression  that  he  is  adding  to  the  effective- 
ness of  his  work,  when  in  reality  he  is  tedious.  A 
language  sufficient  to  give  utterance  to  the  thoughts  of 
Milton  and  Shakespeare  ought  certainly  to  supply  the 
needs  of  the  ordinary  writer. 

2.  Slang.  —  One  of  the  most  common  forms  of  bar- 
barism is  slang,  the  inelegant  and  vulgar  speech  which 
originates  in  local  happenings,  through  the  badinage  of 
the  street,  or  in  the  vituperative  bitterness  of  a  political 
contest.  Slang  is  often  compact,  suggestive,  and  for- 
cible, and  for  that  very  reason  lends  color  to  colloquial 
discourse ;  but  it  always  savors  of  illiteracy,  and  has  no 
place  in  dignified  language.  Most  of  the  slang  words 
live  for  a  brief  time  only,  but  occasionally  one  comes 
into  good  use  to  supply  a  permanent  need.  Such,  for 
instance,  are  WJiig,  Tory,  Yankee,  bombast,  buncombe, 
kttmbug,  banter,  and  snob.  The  objections  to  slang  are 


150  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

that  it  is  vulgar,  inelegant,  short-lived,  and  likely  to 
impoverish  and  debase  our  diction  by  leading  us  to  rely 
upon  the  catch-phrases  of  the  day.  It  should  never  be 
permitted  to  disfigure  serious  composition. 

3.  New    Words. — As  we   have   before  noticed,   our 
language  grows  by  the  introduction  of  new  words  from 
various  sources.      Some  come  from  new  ideas  or  new 
inventions,  such  as  bicycle  and   telephone ;   others,   like 
mob  and  humbiig,  spring  up  to  meet  a  popular  need ; 
commerce  furnishes  many  ;  and  many  which  at  first  are 
peculiar   to    some   occupation,    come   into   general    use. 
New  words    in  any  language  are    inevitable  and    even 
desirable ;  but  they  should  not  be  coined  carelessly,  to 
save  the  trouble  of  thinking  out  a  fitting  expression  in 
the  accepted  vocabulary  of  the  language.     The  exigen- 
cies of  expression    must   determine  what   words    shall 
come  into  a  language..    If  the  new  word  supplies  a  real 
need,  it  will    soon   have  a  recognized    standing ;    thus, 
typewriter,  motorman,  and  dynamo  have  come  into  good 
use.      But  more  often  such  woFds  are  the  invention  of 
newspaper  reporters,  and  partake  either  of  the  nature 
of  slang,  like  fake,  scoop,  fad,  and  guy,   or  are  incor- 
rectly formed,   Xfao.  jnotorneer,   electrocute,   and   bioscope. 
Usually  such  words  are  short-lived,  and  disappear  forever 
to  be  replaced  by  other  and  better  expressions.     The 
ordinary  writer   should   be   cautious    about    using    new 
words  ;  if  one  is  needed,   it  may  safely  be  left  to  the 
best  writers  to  give  it  a  standing  in  the  language. 

4.  New  Formations.  —  Some  latitude  must  be  allowed 


PURITY.    BARBARISMS.  15.1 

in  the  formation  of  new  words  from  words  that  have 
already  come  into  good  use.  When  once  we  adopt  a 
name  for  any  new  idea,  new  formations  from  it  naturally 
follow ;  thus,  when  the  noun,  telephone,  came  into  good 
use,  it  was  followed  by  the  verb,  to  telephone,  and  the 
adjective,  telephonic.  The  noun,  bicycle,  gave  us  the 
verb,  to  bicycle,  the  adjective,  bicycling,  and  another 
noun,  bicyclist.  But  whatever  may  be  the  need  of  such 
words,  there  are  serious  objections  to  the  many  vulgar 
formations  which  are  substituted  for  expressions  already 
in  good  use  ;  e.g.,  walkist,  shoeist,  to  tour,  to  pedal,  to 
sprint,  to  enthuse,  to  burglarize,  to  suicide,  a  combine, 
a  scoop,  an  invite,  trouserings,  expose ;  and  a  host  of 
others  with  which  the  newspapers  of  the  day  are  filled. 

5.  Abbreviations. — A  common  offence  against  good 
English  is  the  use  of  abbreviated  forms  as  words.  Some 
of  these  forms  have  established  themselves  in  the  lan- 
guage, e.g.,  cab  for  cabriolet,  hack  for  hackney  coach,  van 
for  vanguard,/^;/?///  for  penultimate,/;'^^/  for  procuracy  ; 
but  the  greater  part  of  them  must  be  condemned  as 
barbarisms.  Such,  for  instance,  are  :  incog  for  incog- 
nito, photo  for  photograph,  phiz  for  physiognomy,  exam 
for  examination,  gym  for  gymnasium,  ' 'phone  for  tele- 
phone, ad  for  advertisement,  doc  for  doctor,  pard  for 
partner,  gents  for  gentlemen,  and  pants,  a  trade  name 
for  pantaloons,  the  last  two  being  especially  vulgar. 


I $2  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


EXERCISES. 

1.  Show  why  the  laws  of  good  use  are  applicable  to  the 
principles  of  theme  development  as  given  in  Part  I.     Why 
do  we  follow  these  directions  ?     How  do  the  laws  cf  good 
use  govern  us  in  our  choice  of  words  ? 

2.  What  are  the  common  offences  against  good  English  ? 
By  what  names  are  these  offences  known  ?    Of  what  value 
are  these  names  ? 

3.  What  is  a  barbarism  ?     Mention  some  varieties  that 
we  often  meet.     Turn  to  the  exercises  of  the  preceding 
chapter,  and  point  out  what  you  think  to  be  barbarisms  in 
the  illustrations  given. 

4.  Is  a  word  a  barbarism  when  it  violates  only  one  of 
the  principles  of  good  use  ?     Are   barbarisms   more  fre- 
quent in  spoken  or  in  written  discourse  ?     Why  ?'     Where 
have  you  found  barbarisms  in  your  reading?     Where  look 
for  them  ? 

5.  Bring  to  the  class  a  list  of  the  barbarisms  found  in 
your  recent  reading. 

6.  Look  over  the  following  passage,  and  note  the  bar- 
barisms if  there  are  any.     Comment  upon  any  words  you 
think  not  to  be  in  good  use  and  substitute  proper  words 
for  them. 

"  The  roping  of  bear,  mountain  lion,  and  even  deer  is  a 
favorite  pastime  of  the  Arizona  cowboy,  and  at  the  same  time 
affords  a  test  of  his  accuracy  with  the  rope  and  the  speed  and 
activity  of  his  horse.  He  seldom  misses  a  'throw'  when 
the  animal  is  within  range,  but  in  the  roping  of  bear  not  only 
must  the  cowboy  be  successful  in  placing  the  noose  about 
the  bear's  neck,  but  he  must  draw  it  taut  before  the  wily  brute 
shakes  it  off. 

"  On  this  occasion  the  boys  followed  their  quarry  through 
mesquite  shrubbery,  and  several  times  when  it  appeared  on 
an  open  they  tossed  the  lasso  about  the  animal's  neck.  The 
bear  as  frequently  stopped,  obtained  a  little  slack,  and  neatly 
threw  off  the  noose  with  his  paw.  The  cowboys  suffered  the 
disgrace  of  losing  their  animal,  three  lariats,  and  their  temper, 
but  they  returned  to  S afford,  a  small  community  in  the  moun- 
tains, with  four  skins  and  a  wonderful  account  of  a  herd  of 
Arizona  bears.  Cowboys  from  the  surrounding  hills  are  com- 
pleting a  rodeo,  and  are  gathering  for  a  big  bear  hunt.  Little 


.  PURITY.    BARBARISMS.  153 

ammunition  will  be  taken  along,  for  the  cowboy,  as  a  rule, 
who  stoops  to  sh.oot  a  bear  is  regarded  as  no  better  than  the 
hunter  who  revels  in  '  pot-shots,'  and  the  vaquero  who  returns 
without  having  successfully  roped  several  bears  will  be  in 
disgrace." 

7.  The   following  words   and    phrases    are    frequently 
found  in  the  daily  papers  and  magazines.     Substitute  a 
good  English  expression  for  each. 

artiste,  en  deshabille,  terra  firma, 

faux  pas,  mal  de  mer,  ad  libitum, 

entre  nous,  ^clat,  facile  princeps, 

nom-de-plume,  raison  d'etre,  multum  in  parvo, 

tapis,  coup,  verbatim, 

furore,  affaire  d 'amour,  descensus  averni, 

distingue,  on  dit,  casus  belli, 

soiree,  apropos,  sub  rosa, 

sang  froid,  ne'e,  a  la  carte, 

qui  vive,  entree,  matinee. 

8.  Examine  the  following  words,  and  determine  which  are 
in  good  use.    When  in  doubt,  refer  to  a  standard  dictionary. 

enthuse,  paragraphist,  kopje, 

tapis,  presidential,  reconcentrado, 

siesta,  referendum,  corral, 

donate,  fiance'e,  parvenu, 

tony,  boulevard,      ,  spirituel, 

gubernatorial,  penalize,  impromptu, 

electrocute,  memento,  boycott, 

proven,  .orate,  mugwump, 

preventative,  skedaddle,  prote'ge', 

faddist,  cablegram,  reportorial, 

jag,  gotten.,  swell. 

9.  Examine  the  following  abbreviations,  and  determine 
which,  if  any,  are  in  good  use. 

sub,  for  substitute,  chum,  for  chamber-fellow, 

super,  for  superintendent,  curios,  for  curiosities, 

supe,  for  supernumerary,  cycle,  for  bicycle, 

'varsity,  for  university,  prof.,  for  professor, 

'change,  for  exchange,  perk,  for  perquisite, 

cap,  for  captain,  'neath,  for  beneath, 

spec,  for  speculation,  bike,  for  bicycle. 

10.  Correct  all  violations  of  good  English  in  the  follow- 
ing sentences : — 


154  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

1.  We  toured  Spain  and  cycled  through  Russia  before  we 
decided  on  our  Indian  trip. 

2.  We  are  pleased  to  hear  that  the  prince  was  not  troubled 
with  mal  de  mer. 

3.  According  to  the  present  census,  there  has  been  a  hump- 
ing increase  in  the  population  of  many  of  the  cities. 

4.  Newport  is  agog  over  the  doings  of  the  smart  set. 

5.  Mrs.  Fish's  entertainment  was  the  first  blow-out  of  the 
season. 

6.  The  race  began  with  a  ding-dong  mile. 

7.  Eight  bicyclers  pedalled  to  Salem  yesterday. 

8.  When  the  Harvard  pigskin  chasers  came  upon  the  field 
they  presented  a  new  line-up. 

9.  The  hard  work  jars  the  Harvard  men  just  a  little. 

10.  The  Press  Club  will  hold  a  grand  cycle  meet  at  Charles 
River  Park.     Some  good  sprinting  is  expected. 

11.  The  Governor  doffs  his  cow-boy  toga  and  puts  on  those 
of  a  miner. 

12.  Archery  does  not  seem  to  materialize  among  us. 

13.  Business  methods  are  becoming  more  and  more  impor- 
tant in  politics,  and  Mr.  Brown  is   facile  princeps   in    their 
employment. 

14.  He  gave  out  ominous  signs  of  a  proclivity  to  go  on  an 
oratorical  rampage. 

15.  There  was  something  so  intoxicating  in  the  sound  of 
his  voice  and  in  the  plaudits  of  his  claqueurs  that  he  was  on 
the  verge  of  a  loquacious  jag. 

1 6.  In  his  genre  Mr*.  Sothern  is  a  charming  actor. 

17.  The  fools  in  the  audience  found  that  they  had  been 
monkeying  with  a  buzz  saw. 

1 8.  The  home  team  (football)  was-  heavily  penalized. 

19.  Seven  subs  were  put  in,  but  they  could  not  get  into  the 
scrimmage  owing  to  the  light-footedness  of  the  half-backs. 

20.  If  the  umpire  would  bench  some  of  the  players  he  would 
do  a  good  work. 

21.  Pope  now  holds   the  premier  place  in  the  club  for 
rowing. 

22.  The  cops  dashed  forth  and  pinched  the  pugilists.     It 
frequently  eventuates  that  way. 

23.  There  are  no  politics  about  trusts;  they  compel  their 
employees  to  pony  up  for  both  parties. 

24.  Politics  makes  strange  bed-fellows:  witness  the  anti- 
imperialists,  Populists,  mugwumps,  and  silverites  supporting 
the  same  nominee. 

25.  He  wired  his  clientele  to  go  short  on  railroad  stocks 
and  to  bull  the  industrials. 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES.  155 


CHAPTER   IX. 

PROPRIETY.       IMPROPRIETIES. 

56.  Propriety.  —  All  writers  must  be  careful  not  only 
to  use  good  English  words,  but  also  to  use  each  word  in 
its  proper  sense  ;   that  is,  they  must  observe  the  rules 
of  propriety.     Here  again  good  use  must  be  the  guide, 
for  we  use  words  properly  when  we  follow  the  usage 
of  the   best   authors.       Swift's  maxim,    "proper  words 
in  proper   places,"  tersely   expresses   the   idea  of  pro- 
priety. 

57.  What  Improprieties  Are Many  a  writer   fails 

to  convey  his  meaning  because  he  is  careless  in  the  use 
of  his  words.     When  we  use  a  word  in  any  sense  not 
recognized  by  good  use,  we  use  it  improperly.      Such  a 
misuse  of  words  is  known  in  rhetoric  as  an  impropriety. 
The  name  is  unimportant,  but  the  fault  itself  is  preva- 
lent   and   serious.     It    is    comparatively  easy    to  avoid 
the  use  of    barbarisms,  but  a  writer  who  would  avoid 
improprieties  must  have  a  large  vocabulary,  be  familiar 
with  the  meanings  of  his  words,  and  painstaking  in  the 
choice  of  them.      Few  people  are  thus  happily  equipped 
for  writing.     To  the  majority  words  are  but  counters  to 
be  handed  about  with  little  comprehension  of  their  mean- 
ing.    Most  people,  meeting  a  new  word  in  their  read- 


156  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

ing,  conjecture  the  meaning  from  the  context,  and  have 
but  a  vague  idea  of  its  real  signification.  When  they 
attempt  to  use  it,  they  make  all  sorts  of  mistakes,  some 
ridiculous  and  others  serious,  but  all  tending  to  pro- 
duce ambiguity  and  obscurity  of  thought.  Few  of  us 
can  attain  perfection  in  the  use  of  words,  but  if  we  are 
careful  to  discriminate,  we  shall  avoid  the  more  glaring 
errors  which  weaken-and  debase  our  writing.  Accord- 
ingly, we  must  study  our  vocabulary  with  the  aid  of  a 
dictionary,  and  make  ourselves  familiar  with  the  accepted 
signification  of  words. 

58.    Causes    of    Improprieties Improprieties    arise 

mainly  from  two  causes,  carelessness  and  ignorance. 
As  an  example  of  the  former  we  may  instance  the  use 
of  "can"  for  "may,"  "most  "for  "almost,"  "quite" 
for  "rather,"  "guess"  for  "think,"  etc.  Ignorance 
usually  manifests  itself  in  the  use  of  long  words  which 
the  writer  does  not  understand.  We  are  all  familiar 
with  the  mirth-provoking  blunders  of  Mrs.  Malaprop 
in  "The  Rivals."  Few  of  us  would  make  such  mistakes 
as  to  confuse  "illiterate"  and  "obliterate,"  "super- 
cilious" and  "superficial,"  "contagious"  and  "con- 
tiguous," or  "reprehend"  and  "comprehend";  but 
many  of  us  are  liable  to  errors  which  are  reprehensible 
only  in  a  less  degree.  Frequently  we  meet  "transpire  " 
in  the  sense  of  "happen,"  or  find  "affect"  for  "effect," 
and  even  Macaulay  uses  "observation"  for  "observ- 
ance." To  avoid  such  mistakes  it  is  better  to  confine 
ourselves  to  the  simple  words  of  Anglo-Saxon  origin, 


PROPRIE  TV.    IMPROPRIE TIES.  I  5  / 

than  to  attempt  to  use  long  words  carelessly  or  igno- 
rantly. 

59.  Classes  of  Improprieties To  enumerate  all  the 

improprieties  which  we  meet  would  be  impossible.  We 
may,  however,  roughly  classify  some  of  the  more  com- 
mon cases  that  confuse  the  mind  of  the  inexperienced 
writer.  This  classification  is  one  simply  of  conve- 
nience, based  on  the  reasons  for  our  liability  to  confuse 
certain  words. 

i.    Resemblance  in  Looks  and  Sound. 

Sometimes  two  words  look  or  sound  so  much  alike 
that  they  are  mistaken  for  each  other. 

Nouns. 

Access,  Accession.  Access  means  (i)  admission ;  (2) 
a  way  of  entrance.  Accession  means  (i)  an  addition ; 
(2)  the  coming  into  possession  of  a  right.  This  is  the 
legal  sense  of  the  word.  We  gain  "  access  to  the  Presi- 
dent." "  An  accession  of  territory  is  advantageous." 
"  The  accession  of  King  James  to  the  throne  caused  un- 
easiness." 

Advance,  Advancement.  Advance  is  the  act  of  moving 
forward ;  advancement,  the  act  of  being  moved  forward. 
"The  advance  of  the  army  was  rapid."  "His  advance- 
ment in  the  service  was  slow." 

Acceptance,  acceptation.  Acceptance  is  the  act  of  accept- 
ing; as,  "the  acceptance  of  a  nomination  to  office."  Ac- 
ceptation means  the  sense  in  which  an  expression  is 
understood ;  as,  "  This  was  the  common  acceptation  of 
the  term." 

Allusion,  illusion,  delusion.  —  Allusion  refers  to  some- 
thing not  explicitly  mentioned ;  a  reference  to  a  thing. 
Illusion  refers  to  an  error  of  vision ;  delusion,  to  an  error 
of  judgment.  "  The  allusions  of  Macaulay  are  often  ob- 


158  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

scure."  "  The  mirage  is  an  illusion.'1''  "  He  labored  under 
a  delusion" 

Compliment,  complement.  —  Compliment  is  an  expression 
of  approbation  or  praise.  Complement  is  something  that 
completes  a  deficiency.  "  He  receives  many  compliments 
from  his  friends."  "  The  State  has  furnished  its  comple- 
ment of  soldiers." 

Council,  counsel.  —  Council  is  an  advising  body.  Counsel 
is  advice,  or,  in  legal  language,  a  lawyer  who  gives  ad- 
vice. "  The  governor's  council  g&\e  the  men  good  counsel" 
"  The  counsel  for  the  defendant  then  addressed  the  court." 

Enormity,  enormousness.  —  Enormity  refers  to  deeds  of 
unusual  horror ;  enormousness,  to  things  of  unusual  size. 
"  The  enormity  of  the  crime  shocked  the  people."  "  We 
hardly  realize  the  enormousness  of  the  buildings  at  the 
Paris  exhibition." 

Observation,  observance.  —  Observation  means  the  act  of 
observing  or  viewing,  or  it  may  mean  a  remark.  We  speak 
of  "the  observation  of  the  stars,"  or  "of  making  some  ex- 
cellent observations."  Observance  means  the  keeping  of 
a  law  or  rite :  as  "  the  observance  of  the  Sabbath,"  "  the 
observance  of  a  custom." 

Recipe,  receipt.  — Recipe  is  used  in  the  sense  of  a  for- 
mula for  cooking  or  for  medicine.  Receipt  is  also  used  in 
the  sense  of  a  formula  for  cooking,  but  more  often  as  the 
act  of  receiving;  as,  "I  am  in  receipt  of  your  letter";  or 
as  an  acknowledgment  of  payment ;  as,  "  I  have  a  receipt 
for  the  money  paid." 

Signification,  significance.  —  Signification  refers  to  the 
meaning  of  a  thing ;  significance,  to  its  importance.  We 
speak  of  the  "  signification  of  words,"  "  the  significance  of 
an  act." 

Statue,  statute.  —  A  statue  is  a  carved  likeness  or  image 
of  a  living  being.  A  statute  is  a  law.  "  The  statute  pro- 
vides that  the  statue  of  Washington  shall  not  be  defaced." 

Union,  unity.  —  Union  means  the  joining  of  two  or 
more  things ;  as,  "  a  union  of  the  states."  Unity  means 


PROPRIE  TV.    IMPROPRIE TIES.  I  5  9 

"oneness,"  "harmony."     "There    should   be  unity  in  a 
paragraph." 

Verbs. 

Accept,  except.  —  To  accept  means  to  receive  or  take 
something  offered.  We  "  accept  a  gift."  To  except  means 
to  make  an  exception  of,  to  exclude.  "He  was  ex- 
cepted  from  the  general  law." 

Accredit,  Credit.  —  To  accredit  means  to  invest  with 
power  or  authority.  "  Mr.  Choate  is  the  accredited  repre- 
sentative of  the  United  States  to  the  Court  of  St.  James." 
To  credit  means  to  believe.  "  I  can  hardly  credit  your 
statement." 

Affect,  effect.  —  To  affect  is  to  influence,  to  produce  an 
effect  upon,  or  to  seek,  to  aim  at.  "  He  was  greatly 
affected  by  the  news."  "  Some  writers  affect  a  literary 
style."  To  effect  is  to  bring  about,  to  accomplish.  "  The 
prisoner  effected  his  escape." 

Construe,  construct.  —  To  construe  is  to  interpret,  to 
show  the  meaning  of.  The  speaker's  words  were  con- 
strued in  the  wrong  sense."  To  construct  is  to  build. 
"  We  construct  a  building  or  a  sentence." 

Convince,  convict.  —  To  convince  is  to  satisfy  by  argu- 
ment. To  convict  is  to  prove  guilty.  "  I  am  convinced 
that  the  prisoner  was  guilty,  but  there  was  not  sufficient 
evidence  to  convict  him." 

Estimate,  esteem.  —  To  estimate  is  to  judge  the  value 
of.  "I  estimate the  cost  of  a  house."  To  esteem  is  to  have 
a  high  opinion  of.  "I  esteem  my  friend  highly." 

Purpose,  propose.  —  To  purpose  is  to  intend.  "  I  pur- 
pose to  go  to  town  to-morrow."  To  propose  is  to  sug- 
gest. "  I  propose  that  we  go  to  town  to-morrow." 

Prescribe,  proscribe.  —  To  prescribe  is  to  lay  down  as  a 
ttile  of  action,  or  to  direct  as  a  remedy.  "  The  direc- 
tors prescribed  the  course  to  be  taken."  "  The  physician 
prescribed  a  dose  of  oil."  To  proscribe  is  to  ostracise,  or 
V>  condemn.  "  Cicero  was  proscribed. " 


160  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Persecute,  prosecute.  —  To  persecute  is  to  harass,  to 
beset  in  an  annoying  way.  "  The  Romans  persecuted  the 
Christians."  To  prosecute  is  to  follow  with  a  view  to 
accomplish  a  thing,  or  to  proceed  against  any  one  accord- 
ing to  law.  "The  man  prosecuted  his  purpose  faithfully." 
"The  lawyer  prosecuted  the  criminal." 

Adjectives  and  Adverbs. 

Almost,  most. — Almost !  is  used  in  the  sense  of  nearly. 
Most  is  a  superlative.  It  denotes  the  greatest  number, 
quantity,  or  degree  of  anything.  "Almost  everybody  had 
left  the  hall."  "  Most  men  are  honest." 

Credible,  creditable,  credulous.  —  Credible  is  that  which 
may  be  believed.  Creditable  is  that  which  is  deserving  of 
esteem,  reputable.  "  The  story  seems  «hardly  credible, 
although  the  act  was  highly  creditable"  Credulous  is  that 
which  is  too  easy  of  belief,  easily  imposed  upon.  "Credu- 
lous people  may  accept  a  report  that  is  not  credible" 

Decided,  decisive. — Decided  means  strong,  positive,  un- 
questionable; thus  we  may  have  "  decided  opinions  "  about 
many  things.  Decisive  means  that  which  settles  a  point 
at  issue.  "  The  opinion  of  a  judge  is  decisive" 

Exceptional,  exceptionable.  — Exceptional  means  not  ac- 
cording to  rule.  Exceptionable  means  open  to  criticism, 
objectionable.  "  He  is  an  exceptional  man  whose  conduct 
is  not  sometimes  exceptionable" 

Human,  humane.  —  Human  is  that  which  belongs  to 
mankind.  "  Human  nature  is  the  same  everywhere." 
Humane  means  kind  or  compassionate.  "  He  is  a  humane 
citizen." 

Official,  officious.  —  Official  means  belonging  or  pertain- 
ing to  an  office.  "  He  was  able  to  perform  his  official 
duties."  Officious  is  used  in  the  sense  of  unduly  for- 
ward, meddlesome.  "  The  overseer  performs  his  duties 
in  an  officious  way." 

Partly,  partially.  —  Partly  means  in  part,  partially, 
with  partiality,  although  some  very  good  authorities  use 


PROPRIE  TV.     IMPROPRIE  TIES.  1 6 1 

partially  for  partly.     "  This  is  partly  true."     "  The  judge 
was  accused  of  acting  partially.'1'' 

Sensible  of,  sensitive  to. —  We  are  sensible  #/"  anything 
when  we  are  aware  of  it.  We  are  sensitive  to  a  thing  when 
we  are  affected  by  it.  We  are  sensible  of  an  open  door  \ 
we  are  sensitive  to  the  cold  air  that  comes  from  it. 

2.    Resemblance  in  Sound  and  Meaning. 

Often  two  words  resemble  each  other  in  both  sound 
and  meaning,  thus  doubly  confusing  the  mind. 

Nouns. 

Act,  action.  —  An  act  is  a  thing  done.  An  action  more 
properly  refers  to  the  process  of  doing.  We  say,  "He  is 
incapable  of  such  an  act.'1'1  "Actions  speak  louder  than 
words." 

Admittance,  admission. — Admittance  means  permission 
to  enter,  actual  entrance.  Admission  is  also  used  in  the 
sense  of  permission  to  enter,  but  in  a  broader  sense, 
with  less  definiteness  in  respect  to  space ;  as,  "  No 
admittance  to  the  office."  "Admission  to  the  harbor  or  to 
a  peerage."  Admission  also  means  the  price  paid  for  en- 
trance;  but  more  commonly  admission  has  come  to  be 
used  in  a  figurative  sense  as  an  assent  to  an  argument ; 
as,  "  This  admission  lost  him  the  argument." 

Avocation,  vocation. — Avocation  means  a  minor  pursuit 
in  distinction  from  a  regular  calling  or  vocation.  "  Teach- 
ing is  his  vocation,  photography  is  his  avocation" 

Completeness,  completion.  —  Completeness  is  the  state 
of  being  complete.  Completion  is  the  act  of  complet- 
ing. We  speak  of  the  "completion  of  a  building,"  and 
"the  completeness  of  a  collection  of  books  or  relics." 

Emigration,  immigration.  —  Emigration  is  moving  out 
from  a  country.  Immigration  is  moving  into  a  country. 
Thus,  we  speak  of  "emigration  from  Europe,"  and  "  immi- 
gration to  the  United  States." 


1 62  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Falseness,  falsity. — Falseness  means  want  of  veracity, 
deceit,  perfidy,  and  implies  blame.  We  speak  of  "the 
falseness  of  a  man's  heart."  Falsity  is  non-conformity 
to  truth,  usually  without  a  suggestion  of  blame  ;  as,  "  The 
falsity  of  his  argument  was  apparent." 

Relation,  relative. — Relation  is  used  in  a  sense  of  fam- 
ily connection,  but  also  in  an  abstract  sense  of  connec- 
tion in  general ;  hence  relative  is  preferable  when  we  refer 
to  a  member  of  the  family.  "  He  invited  his  relatives  to 
be  present,  although  his  relations  with  them  were  not 
pleasant." 

Requirement,  requisite.  —  Requirement  is  something  re- 
quired by  a  person.  Requisite  is  something  required  by 
the  nature  of  the  case.  "  He  was  not  able  to  comply  with 
the  requirements  of  his  employer."  "A  good  education  is 
a  requisite  to  social  advancement." 

Verbs. 

Lie,  lay. — Lie  means  to  recline  lengthwise,  to  assume 
a  recumbent  position.  It  is  an  intransitive  verb.  Lay  is 
the  causal  verb  of  lie,  and  means  to  cause  to  lie,  to  place. 
Lay  is  a  transitive  verb.  "  We  lie  down  to  sleep."  "  We 
lay  down  the  book."  The  principal  error  among  unedu- 
cated people  is  in  the  use  of  lay  for  lie  in  the  present  and 
imperfect  tenses.  With  a  little  care  these  can  be  properly 
distinguished. 

Rise,  raise. — Rise  and  raise  bear  the  same  relation  to 
each  other  as  do  lie  and  lay.  Rise  is  the  primitive  verb, 
and  is  intransitive.  Raise  is  the  causal  verb  of  rise,  and 
is  transitive.  "  The  building  rises"  but  "  the  carpenter 
raises  the  building." 

Sit,  set.  —  Sit  and  set  are  two  verbs  which  have  the 
same  relations  as  lie  and-  lay,  rise  and  raise.  "  We  sit 
down,"  but  "  we  set  the  chair  down."  "  We  set  the  hen," 
but  "  the  hen  sits  "  ;  hence  we  speak  of  "  a  sitting  hen,"  and 
not  of  "  a  setting  hen." 

Arise,  rise. — Rise  has  come  to  be  used  in  a  literal 
sense;  as,  "  He  rises  from  his  seat."  Arise  is  more  often 
used  figuratively,  as,  "  Trouble  arose  among  the  people." 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES.  163 

Adjectives  and  Adverbs. 

After,  afterwards. — After  should  be  used  as  a  preposi- 
tion ;  afterwards,  as  an  adverb.  "  The  sun  came  out  after 
the  rain."  "Afterwards  we  went  to  drive." 

Continual,  continuous.  —  Continual  is  used  of  oft-re- 
peated acts ;  continuous,  of  uninterrupted  action.  "  The 
speaker  was  annoyed  by  continual  interruptions."  "  There 
was  a  continuous  uproar  during  the  evening." 

Deadly,  deathly.  —  Deadly  is  used  of  anything  that 
causes  death ;  deathly,  of  anything  that  resembles  death. 
We  speak  of  a  "  deadly  poison,"  and  of  a  "  deathly  pallor." 

Haply,  happily. — Haply  is  now  nearly  obsolete  in  prose. 
It  means  by  chance  ;  as,  "  Haply  some  hoary-headed  swain 
may  say."  Happily  means  by  a  happy  chance.  "  Happily 
there  were  no  delays." 

Healthy,  healthful. — -Healthy  means  to  be  in  a  state 
of  good  health.  Healthful  means  to  produce  health, 
wholesome.  "  A  healthful  diet  makes  a  healthy  man." 

Practicable,  practical.  —  A  thing  is  practicable  that  can 
be  done  ;  it  is  practical  when  it  is  not  theoretical.  "  Good 
roads  are  practicable. "  "His  ideas  are  practical. ' ' 

3.  Resemblance  in  Meaning.  —  Sometimes  two  words 
are  so  nearly  alike  in  meaning  that  they  are  confused. 
This  is,  perhaps,  the  most  frequent  cause  of  impropri- 
eties. 

Nouns. 

Ability,  capacity. — Ability  means  the  power  of  doing 
anything.  Capacity  means  the  power  of  containing  any- 
thing, the  power  of  receiving  ideas,  the  extent  of  space. 
"  General  Grant  had  the  ability  to  lead  armies."  "  The 
hogshead  has  a  capacity  of  a  thousand  gallons."  "  The 
crowd  filled  the  room  to  its  utmost  capacity." 

Balance,  rest,  remainder.  —  Balance  is  a  commercial 
term,  and  means  the  difference  between  two  sides  of  an 


164  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

account.  Rest  and  remainder  are  what  is  left  after  a  part 
is  taken.  Rest'vs  a  more  general  term  than  remainder ;  it 
may  represent  a  large  or  a  small  part,  and  is  applied  to 
persons  or  things.  Remainder  generally  represents  a 
small  part,  and  is  applied  to  things.  We  speak  of  "  the 
balance  of  an  account,"  "the  rest  of  the  people,"  and  "  the 
remainder  of  the  hour." 

Character,  reputation.  —  Character  is  what  we  are  ;  repu- 
tation is  what  we  appear  to  be  to  others.  "  We  admire  the 
character of  Lincoln."  "Lord  Roberts  has  a  good  reputa- 
tion as  a  general." 

Custom,  habit.  —  Custom  means  the  frequent  repetition 
of  an  act ;  it  is  voluntary.  Habit  is  a  custom  continued 
so  steadily  as  to  develop  a  tendency  to  permanency ;  it  is 
the  effect  of  custom,  and  is  involuntary,  often  uncontrol- 
lable. "  It  was  a  custom  of  the  Indians  to  scalp  their 
victims."  "  A  man  may  acquire  the  habit  of  opium- 
eating." 

Female,  woman.  —  Female  is  the  opposite  of  male;  it 
is  used  as  the  feminine  of  animals  in  general.  Woman 
is  the  female  of  the  human  kind.  It  is  a  lack  of  courtesy 
to  call  a  woman  a  female.  We  should  say  "  a  woman  is 
wanted  for  the  position,"  not  "  &  female" 

Majority,  plurality.  —  Majority  is  the  greater  part  of 
a  whole  number,  more  than  half.  Plurality  means 
more  than  one,  the  greater  number,  and  is  used  in  a 
political  sense  as  the  excess  of  votes  which  one  candi- 
date receives  over  those  received  by  another,  and  is  not 
necessarily  a  majority,  when  there  are  more  than  two 
candidates.  "  The  majority  of  the  people  are  in  favor  of 
the  measure."  "  Mr.  Smith  received  a  plurality  of  votes 
over  Mr.  Brown  and  Mr.  Jones." 

Person,  party.  —  Person  is  used  of  an  individual ;  party, 
of  a  company  of  individuals  ;  but  in  legal  language  party 
may  be  one  of  the  persons  concerned  in  an  agreement. 
"  Who  is  that  person  whom  we  met  ?  "  "  The  Republi- 
can party  was  victorious." 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES.  165 

Series,  succession.  —  A  series  is  a  number  of  things 
following  one  after  another  and  mutually  related  by 
some  law.  Succession  is  used  when  there  is  no  such  re- 
lation. It  denotes  order  of  occurrence  only,  and  does 
not  imply  connection.  We  speak  of  "  a  series  of  books  " 
and  "  a  succession  of  events." 

Statement,  assertion.  —  A  statement  is  a  formal  setting 
forth  of  facts  or  opinions  bearing  on  a  subject.  An  asser- 
tion is  simply  an  affirmation  or  a  declaration  of  fact. 
"  He  left  the  statement  of  his  case  to  his  counsel."  "  His 
assertion  was  shown  to  be  false." 

Team,  carriage.  —  Team  is  properly  used  of  two  or 
more  animals  working  together  for  a  certain  end.  It 
does  not  include  the  carriage.  Thus,  we  may  speak  of 
"  a  team  of  horses  or  oxen,"  or  "  a  base-ball  team"  but 
we  must  not  say  that  we  hire  a  horse  and  team,  meaning 
a  horse  and  carriage. 

Verdict,  testimony.  —  A  verdict  is  a  decision  of  a  num- 
ber of  men  acting  as  a  single  body ;  thus,  we  may  speak 
of  "  the  verdict  of  the  jury,"  or  "  the  verdict  of  the 
public."  Testimony  is  an  expression  of  opinion  or  of 
knowledge  by  an  individual  or  a  number  of  individuals 
not  acting  as  a  body ;  thus,  "  We  listened  to  the  testi- 
mony of  the  witnesses." 

Verbs. 

Admire,  like.  —  Admire  means  to  regard  with  wonder 
or  surprise,  to  marvel.  It  should  not  be  used  in  the 
sense  of  like,  that  is,  of  being  pleased.  "  I  should  like 
to  go  to  the  World's  Fair,  and  to  admire  the  wrorks  of  art." 

Allude,  mention.  —  We  allude  to  a  thing  when  we  refer 
to  it  indirectly,  or  in  a  slight  way.  We  mention  a  thing 
when  we  name  it  directly.  "  Macaulay  alludes  to  many 
things  which  the  reader  does  not  understand."  "  He  men- 
tions several  enterprises  in  which  he  is  engaged." 

Calculate,  intend.  —  To  calculate  means  to  compute 
mathematically,  to  adjust.  It  should  not  be  used  for 


1 66  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

intend,  which  means  to  have  a  certain  purpose  in  view. 
"  I  intend  to  take  a  vacation,  and  must  calculate  the  ex- 
penses attending  it." 

Carry,  bring,  fetch.  —  To  carry  means  to  take  along 
in  going  ;  to  bring  means  to  take  along  in  coming  ;  to 
fetch  means  to  go  and  bring.  It  is  not  so  much  used 
as  formerly.  "  The  pupil  carried  home  his  book  ;  he  will 
bring  it  in  the  morning."  "  Fetch  me  the  dictionary." 

Claim,  assert.  —  To  claim  means  to  demand  as  one's 
right.  "  We  claim  the  privilege  of  speaking  at  a  meet- 
ing," or  "  We  claim  what  the  law  entitles  us  to."  To 
assert  is  to  make  an  assertion,  to  say  something  in  the 
face  of  implied  doubt.  "  The  criminal  asserts  his  in- 
nocence." 

Confess,  admit.  —  To  admit  is  simply  to  acknowledge 
a  thing  in  which  there  is  no  idea  of  blame  or  confession  ; 
to  confess  is  to  admit  a  fault  or  a  sin.  We  admit  that 
our  argument  is  weak.  We  confess  that  we  have  done 
wrong. 

Discover,  invent.  —  To  discover  is  to  find  something 
that  already  existed.  "  Columbus  discovered  America." 
To^invent  is  to  find  something  which  did  not  previously 
exist,  to  create  by  some  new  combination  of  means, 
to  fabricate.  "  Bell  invented  the  telephone." 

Drive,  ride.  —  Drive  and  ride  are  often  used  inter- 
changeably, but  there  is  a  growing  distinction  between 
the  two.  We  drive  in  a  carriage  ;  we  ride  on  horseback, 
or  on  a  bicycle.  Drive  seems  to  be  narrowing  in  its  use, 
while  ride  seems  to  have  a  broader  use. 

Learn,  teach.  —  In  older  English  learn  and  teach  were 
used  in  the  same  sense,  but  in  modern  English  learn  has 
come  to  mean  to  acquire  knowledge  ;  teach,  to  impart 
knowledge ;  and  this  distinction  must  be  made  in  good 
English  to-day.  We  teach  others,  but  we  must  learn  for 
ourselves. 

Love,  like.  —  Love  and  like,  though  often  carelessly 
used  the  one  for  the  other,  differ  greatly  in  force  and  in 


PROPRIE  TY.    IMPROPRIE  TIES.  1 6/ 

kind.  We  like  or  love  a  friend  according  to  the  intensity 
of  our  feeling.  We  like,  never  love,  a  thing,  such  as  an 
article  of  food,  when  we  are  simply  fond  of  it,  or  are 
pleased  with  it.  Love  implies  a  strong  affection  for  a 
person  ;  like,  simply  a  preference  for  anything. 

Lease,  hire.  —  To  lease  means  to  let  by  lease  and  not 
to  hire  by  lease.  To  hire  means  to  obtain  the  use  of 
for  remuneration.  We  lease  a  house  when  we  let  it,  not 
when  we  hire  it. 

May,  can.  —  We  use  may  in  asking  or  in  giving  per- 
mission ;  we  use  can  to  denote  a  possibility.  "  May  I 
borrow  your  pencil  ? "  "  Can  you  perform  the  task 
allotted  to  you  ?  " 

Stay,  stop.  —  Stop  means  simply  to  come  to  a  halt  or 
rest ;  stay  means  to  remain  for  any  length  of  time.  "  We 
stayed  at  the  seashore  all  summer."  "  Many  people 
stopped  \Q  get  a  drink  of  water  from  the  old  well." 

Transpire,  happen.  —  Transpire  means  to  leak  out 
through  unnoticed  channels.  It  should  not  be  used  in 
the  sense  of  happen. 

"  It  transpired  that  there  was  trouble  at  the  meeting," 
but  events  do  not  transpire ;  they  happen. 

Adjectives  and  adverbs. 

Aggravating,  irritating.  —  Although  at  the  present  day 
aggravating  is  sometimes  used  in  the  sense  of  irritating, 
its  proper  meaning  is  making  heavier,  or  worse  in  some 
way.  We  may  speak  of  "  aggravating  circumstances  " 
and  of  "  irritating  remarks." 

Apt,  likely,  liable.  —  Apt  implies  an  habitual  tendency  to 
do  a  thing,  or  a  readiness  in  doing  it.  "  We  are  apt  to 
think  that  the  world  is  growing  more  immoral."  Likely 
implies  a  probability  of  any  kind.  "  We  are  likely  to  suc- 
ceed if  we  persevere."  Liable  implies  an  unpleasant  proba- 
bility. "When  we  do  wrong  we  are  liable  to  be  punished." 

Apparently,  evidently.  —  Apparently  is  used  of  that  which 
seems,  but  may  not  be,  real ;  evidently,  of  that  which  both 


1 68  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

seems  and  is  real.  "  He  was  apparently  a  man  in  the 
prime  of  life."  "  The  sun  is  evidently  the  great  source  of 
heat  in  the  world." 

Both,  each,  every.  —  When  we  speak  of  two  persons  or 
things  as  acting  together,  that  is,  as  a  pair,  we  use  both. 
"  Both  men  were  noted  for  their  honesty."  When  we 
speak  of  two  or  more  persons  or  things  separately,  that  is, 
consider  them  one  by  one,  we  use  each.  "  Each  boy 
denied  that  he  was  at  fault."  When  we  speak  of  two  or 
more  persons  or  things  as  forming  a  group,  and  do  not 
make  any  individual  distinction,  we  use  every.  "  The  sun 
rises  every  day."  Every  directs  attention  to  the  group  as 
a  whole  ;  eath,  chiefly  to  the  individuals  composing  the 
group. 

Mad,  angry.  —  Mad  properly  means  insane,  and  is  not 
correctly  used  in  the  sense  of  angry.  "  The  continual  use 
of  some  drugs  makes  men  mad"  "His  remarks  made 
me  angry" 

Mutual,  common.  —  Mutual  is  improperly  used  in  the 
sense  of  common  ;  it  means  reciprocal,  pertaining  alike 
to  both  sides,  sharing  alike ;  thus  we  may  speak  of 
"  mutual  love,"  "  a  mutual  insurance  company."  A  and 
B  may  be  "  mutual  friends,"  but  C  cannot  be  a  mutual 
friend  of  A  and  B. 

Quite,  very,  rather.  —  Quite  means  entirely  ;  it  is  not  in 
good  use  in  the  sense  of  rather  or  very.  We  may 
say,  "  I  am  quite  satisfied  with  his  explanation,"  but 
not,  "  He  was  quite  seriously  hurt,"  meaning  "  He  was 
rather  seriously  hurt." 

Oral,  Verbal.  —  Oral  is  used  of  spoken  words  ;  verbal 
of  words  either  spoken  or  written.  We  speak  of  an  oral 
exercise  in  distinction  from  one  that  is  written.  We  read 
a  verbal  report  of  the  proceedings  at  a  meeting. 

Splendid,  Elegant.  —  Splendid  means  brilliant,  dazzling, 
grand.  We  may  speak  of  a  "  splendid  palace,"  or  a 
"splendid  victory."  Elegant  means  refined,  characterized 
by  good  taste ;  as,  "  Her  manners  were  elegant" 


PROPRIE  TY.    IMPROPRIE  TIES.  1 69 


•ebositions. 


Among,  between.  —  When  we  refer  to  more  than  two 
persons  or  things,  we  use  among ;  when  we  refer  to  two 
only,  between  is  the  proper  word.  "  He  divided  the  candy 
among  five  boys."  "  The  relations  between  the  United 
States  and  England  are  cordial." 

At,  in.  —  Both  at  and  in  are  used  to  denote  the  place 
where.  When  the  place  is  viewed  as  a  mere  point,  at 
is  used.  In  makes  prominent  the  idea  "  within  the  bounds 
of."  "  The  boy  was  at  school  every  day,  and  when  he 
was  in  school,  he  was  studious." 

By,  with.  —  By  is  more  properly  used  to  denote  the 
agent;  with  to  denote  the  means  or  instrument.  "  Rich- 
mond was  taken  by  General  Grant  with  a  large  army." 

4.    Shall  and  will.      Should  and  would. 

The  mistakes  that  are  made  in  the  use  of  shall  and 
will,  should  and  would,  may  be  regarded  as  impropri- 
eties. So  confusing  are  these  words  to  many  people 
that  they  seem  to  require  special  treatment. 

Shall  and  will.  —  Many  grammars  teach  that  shall  and 
will  may  be  used  interchangeably  to  form  the  future  tense 
of  a  verb;  as,  "I  shall  or  will  come,"  "You  shall  or  will 
come,"  "He  shall  or  will  come,"  etc.  This  is  not  true. 
To  form  the  future  we  should  use  shall  in  the  first  person, 
and  will  in  the  second  and  third  persons,  singular  and 
plural ;  thus,  "  I  shall  come,"  "  You  will  come,"  "  He  will 
come,"  "  We  shall  come,"  "  You  will  come,"  "  They  will 
come."  The  alternative  form  expresses  something  more 
than  futurity. 

The  distinction  between  the  two  words  will  be  better 
understood  if  we  consider  the  history  of  them.  Shall 
and  will  originally  had  no  connection  with  each  other. 
They  were  separate  verbs,  each  having  a  meaning  of  its 


I/O  COMPOSITION  AND  It  HE  TOR  1C. 

own.  Shall  implied  an  obligation,  and  was  used  in  a 
sense  much  like  that  of  our  word  "  ought ;  "  will  implied 
volition,  and  corresponded  to  the  Latin  "  volo  "  and  the 
French  "  vouloir."  As  the  English  verb  had  no  future 
form,  shall  was  used  as  an  auxiliary  to  express  future 
action,  and  later  will  was  substituted  for  shall  in  the  sec- 
ond and  third  persons,  probably  as  a  matter  of  courtesy. 
As  auxiliaries  they  lost  their  original  meaning,  and  now 
express  simple  futurity.  When  otherwise  used,  they  still 
retain  traces  of  their  original  meaning;  thus,  "I  will 
come,"  means"!  am  willing,"  or  "I  wish  to  come." 
Sometimes  will  implies  a  promise  or  a  determination. 
"  You  "  or  "  he  shall  come  "  implies  a  command  or  a  threat. 
"  Thou  shalt  not  kill  "  is  a  command. 

To  express  futurity  the  following  rules  may  be  given 
for  the  use  of  shall  and  will: 

1.  In  principal  clauses  use  shall  in  the  first  person,  and 
will  in  the  second  and  third  persons,  singular  and  plural. 

2.  In  subordinate  clauses  shall  is  generally  the  form  to 
be  used  in  all  persons ;  but  if  it  be  a  case  of  indirect  dis- 
course, that  is,  a  noun  clause  introduced  by  "  that "  after 
a  verb  of  "saying"  and  the  like,  use  the  auxiliary  that 
would  be  proper  if  the  sentence  were  turned  into  direct 
discourse;  thus,  "He  says  that  he  shall  go,"  "  He  thinks 
that  you  will  go." 

3.  In  questions  use  shall  in  the  first  person,  and  in  the 
second   and  third  persons   use    the  auxiliary  that  is  ex- 
pected in  the  answer;  thus,  "  Shall  you  go  to  the  theater 
to-night  ?  "  "  Will  he  be  at  home  when  I  call  ?  " 

Shduld  and  would.  —  As  should  and  would  were  origi- 
nally but  the  past  tenses  of  shall  and  will,  we  should  ex- 
pect them  to  follow  the  same  rules.  In  general  this  is 
true,  but  in  addition  they  have  certain  uses  of  their  own. 

Should  is  sometimes  used  in  its  original  sense  of 
"  ought,"  as,  "  We  should  do  what  is  right."  "  We  should 
do  unto  others  what  we  would  that  men  should  do  unto 
us."  Should  is  also  used  in  a  conditional  sense  as -the 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES.  171 

equivalent  of  "  were  to  ;  "  as,  "  If  it  should  rain,  we  shall 
go  just  the  same." 

Would  is  sometimes  used  to  express  habitual  action. 
"  He  would  often  express  his  opinions."  Would  also  ex- 
presses a  wish ;  as,  "  Would  that  he  had  died  in  his  in- 
fancy." 

60.  Idiomatic  English.  —  English,  like  other  lan- 
guages, has  many  constructions  and  expressions  pecu- 
liar to  itself,  known  as  idioms.  These  idioms  cannot  be 
translated  literally  into  other  languages,  and  many  of 
them  will  not  bear  grammatical  analysis.  They  are  not 
manufactured  expressions,  but  are  the  growth  of  the 
soil  ;  and  although  they  are  the  result,  perhaps,  of  care- 
lessness and  loose  thinking,  they  are,  nevertheless, 
sanctioned  by  good  use,  and  are  among  the  strongest 
and  most  characteristic  features  of  the  language. 
"How  do  you  do?"  "What  is  the  matter  ?"  "to  fall 
asleep,"  "to  look  out,"  "to  be  out  of  one's  head,"  "to 
play  fast  and  ioose,"  are  common  idioms  of  the  day. 
Such  idioms  express  ideas  as  nothing  else  can  do ; 
they  are  often  figurative,  always  brief  and  full  of  mean- 
ing, and  their  use  gives  to  discourse  a  freshness  and 
native  vigor  that  would  otherwise  be  wanting.  A  list 
of  idioms  in  good  use  would  include  the  following :  — 

A  stroke  of  luck.  To  be  of  age. 

To  get  rid  of.  Full  many  a. 

To  jump  to  a  conclusion.  On  hand. 

Under  the  circumstances.  To  be  bent  upon. 

Now-a-days.  To  catch  cold. 

To  call  to  account.  To  turn  the  tables. 

To  take  advantage  of.  Of  mine  (a  friend  of  mine). 


1/2  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

61.    Unidiomatic   English Important     as     English 

idioms  are  in  good  discourse,  they  are  not  to  be  con- 
fused with  those  constructions  that  are  contrary  to  the 
genius  of  the  language,  that  is,  the  English  method  of 
combining  words;  such  as,  "What  for  a  man  is  he?" 
"  I  am  desirous  to  enter  a  business  house,"  "  The  window 
gives  upon  the  balcony,"  "  You  make  me  to  feel  tired," 
"He  left  his  seats  above,"  for  "he  left  his  dwelling- 
place  above."  Such  combinations  of.  words  are  not  in 
good  use,  and,  therefore,  are  improprieties.  These  im- 
proprieties usually  result  from  an  attempt  to  translate 
a  foreign  language  into  literal  English,  or  to  adopt  a 
foreign  style,  in  which  the  constructions  and  combi- 
nations of  words  are  different  from  what  the  English 
language  allows.  "  Ou'  avez-vous  ?  "  and  "Comment 
vous  portez-vous  ? "  are  good  French  idioms,  but  their 
sense  is  completely  lost  if  we  try  to  translate  them  into 
literal  English.  "  What  for  a  man  is  he  ? "  may  be  a 
good  German  idiom ;  but  in  English  we  should  say, 
"  What  kind  of  man  is  he  ?  "  We  must  beware,  then, 
of  trying  to  translate  any  foreign  language  literally, 
or  of  introducing  into  our  English  any  idiomatic  use 
of  words  which  we  have  found  in  studying  other 
languages. 

EXERCISES. 

i.    What  do  you  mean  by  "  propriety  "  ?     How  should 

you  distinguish  an  impropriety  ?     What  are  the  causes  of 

improprieties  ?     How  do  they  affect  our  writing  ?     How 

does  our  reading  help  us  to  avoid  them  ? 

•  2.    Is    it  possible  to    classify  improprieties   definitely  ? 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES.  173 

Why  not?  Is  there  any  way  in  which  they  may  be 
roughly  grouped  ?  What  reasons  can  you  give  for  your 
liability  to  confuse  certain  words  ? 

3.  Distinguish  in  meaning  between  the  following:  — 

advance,  progress,  and  pro-         hanged  and  hung. 

gression.  grant  and  give, 

alternative  and  choice.  allege  and  maintain, 

couple  and  pair.  declare  and  assert, 

depot  and  railway  station.  expect  and  suppose, 

migration  and  emigration.  decimate  and  destroy, 

woman  and  lady.  fly  and  flee, 

man  and  gentleman.  repair  and  mend, 

house  and  home.  begin  and  commence, 

loan  and  lend.  settle  and  locate, 

part  and  portion.  contemptible   and   contemp- 

amount  and  number.  tuous. 

scholar  and  pupil.  each  other  and  one  another, 

college  and  university.  clever  and  pleasant, 

sewage  and  sewerage.  less  and  fewer, 

habit  and  practice.  noted  and  notorious. 

4.  Construct  sentences  in  which  the  preceding  words 
are  used  properly. 

5.  Insert  the  proper  word  in  each   of  the  following 
sentences  : 

1.  Mr.  Brown  is  building   a   beautiful  (house,   home)  in 
Brookline. 

2.  Will  the  (party,  person)  who  found  an  umbrella  in  the 
Union  (depot,  station)  return  the   same  to  the  office  of  the 
Company? 

3.  The  (testimony,  verdict)  of  history  is  that  Christianity 
has  done  much  for  .the  (advance,  advancement)  of  civilization. 

4.  The  rjver  at  this  point  is  a  (series,  succession)  of  rapids 
which  makes  it  difficult  for  small  boats  to  pass. 

5.  The  Governor  in  his  Thanksgiving  proclamation  asks 
the  people  to  abstain  from  their  usual  (vocations,  avocations) 
on  Thanksgiving  Day. 

6.  We  are  pleased  to  (state,  say)  that  the  new  City  Hall 
is  approaching  (completeness,  completion). 

7.  The  savages  fell  upon  us  so  suddenly  that  to  attempt 
resistance  would  have  been  the  (act,  action)  of  a  madman. 

8.  The  (observation,  observance)  of  a  few  rules  of  health 
will  prolong  life  many  years. 


1/4  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

9.   Two     (proposals,    propositions)    were    submitted    for 
consideration  at  the  last  meeting. 

10.  His  (character,  reputation)  among  his  friends  is  that 
of  an  honorable  business  man. 

11.  He  was  deeply  (effected,   affected)  by  what  she  had 
told  him,  but  it  did  not  alter  his  resolution. 

12.  The  king  could  never  be  persuaded  to  employ  that 
(description,  kind)  of  manoeuvering  in  his  campaigns. 

13.  An  invitation  was  (given,  extended)  to  him   to  come 
and  visit  them  whenever  it  suited  his  convenience. 

14.  He  was  greatly  (aggravated,  irritated)  by  the  outcome 
of  the  affair. 

15.  The  party  was  very  anxious  to   occupy  the    (balance, 
remainder)  of  the  time  in  (reaching,  discovering)  the  farther 
range  of  mountains. 

16.  The  teacher  confessed  that  he  was  a  very  (apt,  likely) 
pupil,  but  added  that  he  troubled  her  greatly,  because  he  was 
so  (apt,  liable,  likely)  to  get  into  trouble. 

17.  Every  (individual,  person)  in  that  vast  assembly  was 
moved  to  sympathy  with  the  speaker. 

18.  My  friend  Morrison  (considers,  thinks)  the  piano  the 
king  of  instruments. 

19.  Two  months  before  the  election  we  (predicated,  pre- 
dicted) the  results  which  our  news  columns  announced  yester- 
day. 

6.    Replace  the  improprieties  in  the  following  passages 
with  proper  words  :  — 

1.  "  Sir,"  said  a  man  to  Dr.  Parr,  "  I  have  a  contemptible 
opinion  of  you."     "  That  does  not  surprise  me,"  replied  the 
Doctor  ;  "  all  your  opinions  are  contemptible." 

2.  A  gentleman  who  has  had  exceptionable  opportunities  to 
observe  the  trend  of  political  feeling  in  the  west,  states  that 
there  is  no  doubt  that  the  Republican  candidates  will  be 
elected. 

3.  A  great  part  of  the  congregation  left  the  church  after 
the  service,  but  the  balance  remained  to  talk  over  the  sermon. 

4.  Several  years  have  transpired  since  I  visited  the  spot, 
and  I  understand  there  has  been  any  number  of  changes. 

5.  I  beg  to  acknowledge  the  acceptation  of  your  book.     I 
have  only  partially  examined  it,  but  I  admire  it  very  much, 
and  propose  to  spend  many  a  spare  hour  in  reading  it. 

6.  "Can  I  leave  the  room?"     "No,   you  cannot,  unless 
you  want  to  stop  after  school." 

7.  We  engaged  a  couple  of  men  to  take  our  baggage  to 
the  depot. 


PROPRIETY     IMPROPRIETIES.  1/5 

8.  Such  was  the  violence  of  the  storm  that  none  of  the 
passengers  hoped  the  vessel  could  outlive  the  gale. 

9.  We  had  a  nice  time  yesterday  ;  the  weather  was  nice, 
the  lunch  was  nice,  and  everything  was  nice. 

10.  A  society  for  the   promotion  of  good  citizenship  has 
lately  been  inaugurated  in  Boston. 

11.  I   have  exceptionable   opportunities  for  making  good 
investments,  and  claim  to  give  satisfaction. 

12.  I  confess  that  I  have  never  attained  a  great  quantity 
of  perfection  in  the  art. 

13.  A  dispatch  from  London  states  that  Sir  Thomas  Lip- 
ton  proposes  to  issue  another  challenge  for  the  cup. 

14.  The   strike   of   the  coal-miners,  which  it  was  claimed 
would  transpire  yesterday,  failed  to  materialize. 

15.  The  advent  of  so  large  a  corporation  into  this  locality 
is  an  unlooked-for  factor  in  the  situation. 

16.  It  is  hoped  that  the  guilty  parties  will  be  apprehended 
during  the  balance  of  the  week. 

17.  The  local  dramatic  company  scored  a  decided  success  ; 
the  play  was  elegantly  staged,  and  the  parts  were  splendidly 
taken. 

7.  Distinguish  carefully  between  "  shall  "  and  "will," 
"  should  "  and  "  would."  Give  rules  for  the  use  of  "  shall  " 
and  "  will  "  in  expressing  future  action. 

Mention  any  special  uses  of  "  should  "  and  "  would." 
In  the  following  sentences  insert  the  proper  forms,  — 
"  shall  "  or  "  will,"  "  should  "  or  "  would  "  :  - 

1.  You  (shall,  will)  know  to-morrow  the  result  of  the  game. 

2.  Whenever     she     disobeyed    she    (should,    would)    be 
punished. 

3.  He  says  he  (shall,  will)  be  present  at  the  meeting. 

4.  He   says   his  brother  (shall,    will)   be   present   at  the 
meeting. 

5.  If  we  (should,  would)  visit  the  scenes  of  our  childhood, 
we  (should,  would)  find  many  changes. 

.  6.   The  time  is  coming  when  we  (shall,  will)  have  to  go 
somewhere  else  for  our  coal. 

7.  He  promised  that  our  trunk  (should,  would)  be  here  by 
six  o'clock. 

8.  Do  you  think  you  (shall,  will)  go  with  us  to-morrow? 

9.  (Shall,  will)  I  send  you  the  letter  if  it  (should,  would) 
come? 

10.   (Should,  would)  you  like  to  come  to  dinner,  if  you  had 
the  time  ? 


COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 


8.    Correct  the  following  sentences,  if  necessary  :  — 

1.  I  asked  her  whether  she  would  come  again. 

2.  If  he  will  come   to-day,  should  you  be  willing  to  see 
him? 

3.  On    receipt   of   this,   you   will    immediately   report   at 
headquarters. 

4.  "  Perchance  I  will  be  there  as  soon  as  you." 

5.  Were  we  writing  for  the  English  public,  we  would  give 
it  but  a  paragraph. 

6.  Whom   shall   the   Democrats  nominate?  asks  a  daily 
paper. 

7.  "  I  will  sooner  have  a  beard  grow  on  the  palm  of  my 
hand  than  he  shall  get  one  on  his  cheek." 

8.  To-morrow  we  will  offer  for  sale  all  of  our  stock  of 
neckties  at  reduced  rates. 

9.  I  would  like  to   go   to   town,  and   should   do  so  if   I 
could  ? 

10.    Should    they  not  agree  to  the  proposals,  what  would 
I  do? 


9.  Write  sentences  in  which  each  of  the  following  words 
is  employed  followed  by  the  preposition  which  it  takes. 
In  the  cases  of  the  words  after  which  several  prepositions 
are  given,  write  sentences  illustrating  the  proper  use  of 
the  word  with  each  of  them. 


Abhorrent. 

Abhorrence. 

Accountable  (to,  for). 

Acquiesce. 

Admission  (to,  into]. 

Advantage  (of,  over}. 

Agree  (among,  in,  to,  with}. 

Ambitious  (after, for,  of}. 

Answer  (for,  to}. 

Attend  (to,  upon}. 

Bargain  (for,  with). 

Call  (at,  for,  in,  on}. 

Careful  (of,  in}. 

Coincide. 

Compatible. 

Complain. 

Conform. 

Connect  (to,  with}. 


Correspond  (to,  with}. 

Deficient. 

Desirous. 

Discourage. 

Distinction. 

Emulous. 

Equal  (to,  with}. 

Exonerate. 

Grieve  (at,  for}. 

Inure. 

Join  (to,  with}. 

Killed  (by,  with}. 

Listen  (for,  to}. 

Mastery  (of,  over}. 

Militate. 

Necessity  (of.  for}. 

Objection  (against,  to). 

Opposite. 


PROPRIETY.    IMPROPRIETIES. 


Partiality  (for,  to). 
Pleased  (at,  with}. 
Possessed  (by,  of,  with}. 
Prevent. 
Rejoice  (at,  in). 
Reproach  (with,  for). 
Requisite. 


Reward  (by,  for,  with}. 
Secure  (against,  from,  of). 
Significant. 
Vexed  (at,  with). 
Weep  (at,  for). 
Yearn  (for,  towards). 
Zealous  (for,  in). 


10.    Write  sentences  illustrating  the  correct  use  of  the  fol- 
lowing words. 


Character. 

Limitation. 

Avocation. 

Prominent. 

Residence. 

Plurality. 

Site. 

Aggravate. 

Degrade. 

Antagonize. 

Endorse. 

Approve. 

Reckon. 

Calculate. 


Locate. 

Proven. 

Propose. 

Want. 

Preceding. 

Imminent. 

Posted. 

Advancement. 

Complement. 

Decisive. 

Remainder. 

Invent. 

Patent. 


178  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC 


CHAPTER    X. 

SOLECISMS. 

62.    Solecisms The     employment     of    expressions 

that  violate  the  laws  of  English  grammar  is  the  most 
distinctive  mark  of  the  unlettered  mind,  and  is  there- 
fore to  be  avoided  with  the  greatest  care.  Such 
ungrammatical  expressions,  or  errors  in  syntax,  are 
technically  known  in  rhetoric  as  solecisms.  Theoreti- 
cally the  pupil  who  has  come  to  the  study  of  rhetoric 
may  be  supposed  to  have  mastered  the  principles  of 
syntax  and  to  need  no  further  drill  in  correct  gram- 
matical expression  ;  practically  we  are  all  so  much 
influenced  by  the  careless  speech  of  the  day  that 
we  often  fall  into  constructions  that  are  not  in  accord 
with  the  principles  of  English  speech.  "Grammar," 
says  De  Quincey,  "is  so  little  of  a  perfect  attain- 
ment amongst  us,  that,  with  two  or  three  exceptions, 
we  have  never  seen  the  writer,  through v  a  circuit 
of  prodigious  reading,  who  has  not  sometimes  violated 
the  accidence  of  English  grammar."  It  is  well,  there- 
fore, to  fix  in  the  mind  some  of  the  specific  and  common 
errors,  that  we  may  be  on  our  guard  against  them. 
"He  don't,"  "you  was,"  "  I  seen,"  are  such  crude  mis- 
takes that  it  seems  almost  unnecessary  to  caution 


SOLECISMS.  179 

pupils  against  them,  and  yet  just  such  solecisms  are 
continually  surprising  us  in  the  speech  of  those  who 
should  know  better.  It  is  possible  to  give  here  only 
a  few  of  the  more  important  instances  of  grammatical 
errors  which  occur  in  the  speech  or  in  the  writing  of 
the  careless  and  the  ignorant.  Bearing  in  mind  what 
the  sentence  is  as  it  has  been  defined  on  page  86,  the 
pupil  should  take  care  in  his  writing  to  be  sure  that 
every  word  has  a  definite  grammatical  relation  in  the 
sentence. 

63.   Nouns  and  Pronouns. 

Errors  in  the  use  of  nouns  and  pronouns  may  be  con- 
sidered under  two  heads,  errors  of  case  and  errors  of 
number.  As  nouns  in  English  have  very  little  inflec- 
tion, mistakes  in  the  cases  are  not  frequent  ;  but  as 
pronouns  have  retained  their  inflectional  forms  to  a 
greater  extent,  the  possibility  of  using  them  incorrectly 
is  much  greater. 

Nouns. 

i .    Errors  in  Case.      The  Possessive. 

In  using  the  possessive  case  great  care  must  be  exer- 
cised in  putting  the  apostrophe  where  it  belongs.  The 
possessive  singular  is  formed  by  adding  "  's "  to  the 
nominative  ;  thus,  "  lady's,"  not  "  ladie's,"  "  Dickens's," 
not  "  Dicken's."  But  a  proper  noun  ending  in  "  s  "  may, 
for  the  sake  of  euphony,  take  the  apostrophe  alone ;  thus, 
"  Socrates'."  The  possessive  plural  is  formed  by  adding 
the  apostrophe  to  the  nominative  plural  when  the  lafter 
ends  in  "  s,"  but  otherwise  it  is  formed  like  the  possessive 
singular;  thus,  "boys',"  "men's,"  "children's." 

The   possessive   case  of  compound  nouns  and  expres- 


l8o  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC 

sions  used  as  compound  nouns  is  formed  by  adding  the 
proper  sign  of  the  possessive  to  the  end  of  the  compound  ; 
thus,  "  brother-in-law's,"  "  William  the  Conqueror's." 
When  we  have  two  nouns  in  the  possessive  case,  one  in 
apposition  with  the  other,  the  sign  of  the  possessive  is 
usually  put  with  the  second,  but  may  be  used  with  both ; 
thus,  "  Go  down  to  Smith  the  grocer's,"  or  "Go  down  to 
Smith's  the  grocer's." 

In  using  the  possessive  form  of  such  expressions  as 
"  somebody  else  "  or  "  anybody  else,"  we  may  say  "  some- 
body's else  "  or  "  somebody  else's,"  "  anybody's  else,"  or 
"  anybody  else's."  The  rules  of  grammar  favor  the  first 
of  the  two  forms,  but  good  usage  seems  to  have  adopted 
the  second. 

If  several  nouns  in  the  possessive  case  qualify  the  same 
noun,  and  are  connected  by  and,  the  possessive  sign  may 
be  used  with  the  last  one  only ;  thus,  "  Men,  wromen, 
and  children's  shoes."  But  if  common  possession  is  not 
implied,  or  if  the  possessive  words  are  joined  by  some  dis- 
junctive term,  the  possessive  sign  must  be  used  with  each 
word.  Occasionally  the  sentence  will  be  more  elegant  if 
possession  is  expressed  by  the  use  of  the  preposition 
"  of,"  and  in  some  cases  by  both  the  preposition  and  the 
regular  possessive  case  ;  thus,  "  How  do  you  like  that 
new  house  of  John's  ? "  The  phrase  "  of  John's  "  is  a 
recognized  *English  idiom. 

The  possessive  case  must  not  be  used  as  coextensive 
with  the  Latin  genitive.     As  a  general  rule,  the  possessive 
case   in   English  should   denote  ownership  or  possession, 
and  should  not  be  applied  to  inanimate  objects.     We  may 
say  "  the  boy's  book,"  but  not  "the  city's  indebtedness," 
for  the  latter  is  a  sort  of  personification  of  "  the  city," 
when  no  such  personification  is  intended.     In  such  cases 
it  is  better  to  use  the  objective  case  with  "  of."     We  may 
also  say  "  the  President's  reception  "  when  it  is  the  Presi- , 
dent  who  receives,  but  if  some  one  receives  the  President,  * 
we   should   say  "  the  reception  of  the  President ;  "    that  ^ 
is,    if   a    noun    referring  to    a   person    be    used    subjec- 


SOLECISMS.  1 8 1 

lively,  it  may  be  put  in  the  possessive  case,  but  if  it  be 
used  objectively  it  must  be  put  in  the  objective  case  with 
"  of."  Thus  we  may  speak  of  "  living's  visit  to  Strat- 
ford," but  not  of  "  the  strike's  beginning,"  or  we  may 
say,  "  a  good  story  of  Lincoln's  "  (one  that  he  told)  and 
"  a  good  story  of  Lincoln  "  (one  told  about  him).  The 
objective  genitive  was  an  admissible  construction  in  the 
Anglo-Saxon,  but  it  has  now  become  obsolete. 

We  must  distinguish  carefully  between  the  verbal  noun 
in  "  ing  "  and  the  present  participle  in  "  ing."  The  former 
is  used  as  a  noun  and  the  latter  as  an  adjective ;  conse- 
quently when  the  verbal  noun  is  used  the  substantive  which 
precedes  it,  and  which  is  used  as  the  active  agent,  should 
be  in  the  possessive  case.  Thus  we  may  say,  "  We  looked 
for  his  coming,"  but  such  common  sentences  as  "  The 
probability  of  him  helping  them  was  small,"  are  not  cor- 
rect. "  Helping  "  as  here  used  is  an  adjective  modifying 
"  him;"  consequently  the  sentence  has  no  meaning;  but 
if  we  think  of  "  helping  "  as  a  verbal  noun,  as  the  meaning 
shows  it  to  be,  and  change  "  him  "  to  "  his,"  the  sentence 
becomes  clear. 

Pronouns.  —  Mistakes  are  frequently  made  in  the 
use  of  the  nominative  and  the  objective  cases.  Nouns 
present  nc  difficulties  in  this  respect,  but  as  pronouns  re- 
tain their  inflectional  forms,  we  are  liable  to  become  care- 
less in  the  use  of  the  two  cases.  After  prepositions  we 
should  be  especially  careful  to  use  the  objective  form. 
We  must  say  "  between  you  and  me"  not  " between  you 
and  /,"  "  an  invitation  for  you  and  me"  not  "  an  invita- 
tion for  you  and  /." 

It  is  sometimes  difficult  to  decide  which  case  of  the 
pronoun  to  use  after  the  verb  to  be,  but  if  we  remember 
that  the  verb  to  be  is  followed  by  the  same  case  as  that 
which  precedes  it,  we  shall  have  little  trouble.  Thus  when 
the  pronoun  follows  the  finite  verb  it  should  be  in  the 
nominative  case  ;  as,  "  If  I  were  he"  or  "  if  I  had  been 
he."  When  it  follows  the  infinitive  it  should  usually  be 
in  the  objective  case,  as  "  I  supposed  it  to  be  him." 


1 82  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Who  and  Whom.  —  Even  the  most  careful  writers  and 
speakers  often  find  difficulty  in  deciding  promptly  upon 
the  proper  case  of  the  relative  and  the  interrogative. 
When  whom,  either  relative  or  interrogative,  precedes  the 
verb  of  which  it  is  the  object,  the  natural  tendency  is  to 
use  the  nominative  in  its  place ;  thus,  "  Who  did  you  see 
last  night?"  or  "He  could  not  remember  who  he  had 
given  it  to,"  are  typical  examples  of  the  use  of  who  for 
whom.  Occasionally  the  verb  of  the  subordinate  clause  to 
which  the  pronoun  belongs  is  omitted,  leaving  it  doubtful 
whether  a  finite  verb  or  an  infinitive  is  to  be  supplied.  In 
such  cases  it  is  usually  better  to  assume  that  the  omitted 
verb  is  an  infinitive ;  thus,  "  We  left  the  valuables  with 
Mr.  Blockley,  whom  we  thought  (to  be)  a  thoroughly 
honest  man,"  is  better  than  ''We  left  the  valuables 
with  Mr.  Blockley,  who  we  thought  (was)  a  thoroughly 
honest  man." 
2.  Errors  in  Number. 

Nouns.  • —  That  nouns  in  English  usually  form  their 
plurals  in  "  s  "  has  become  so  impressed  upon  our  minds 
that  we  are  apt  to  associate  all  nouns  ending  in  "  s  "  with 
the  plural  and  all  nouns  not  ending  in  "  s "  with  the 
singular.  This  gives  rise  to  many  errors.  We  must  re- 
member that  not  all  nouns  form  their  plural  in  "  s." 
Nouns  of  foreign  origin  usually  retain  the  plural  form 
which  they  have  in  their  own  language :  thus,  alumni, 
radii,  analyses,  data,  phenomena,  and  tableaux  are  plural. 
On  the  other  hand,  we  have  many  nouns  ending  in  "  s  " 
which  are  singular,  for  example,  news,  means  (an  instru- 
ment), and  pains.  Nouns  in  "  ics,"  such  as  ethics ,  mathe- 
matics, politics,  and  tactics  are  usually  treated  as  singular, 
while  headquarters,  measles,  and  alms  are  treated  some- 
times as  singular,  sometimes  as  plural.  "  The  United 
States  "•  is  properly  regarded  as  singular,  although  some 
very  good  authorities  use  it  as  plural.  Collective  nouns 
may  be  regarded  as  singular  or  plural  according  to  their 
signification. 

Pronouns.  —  A  pronoun  must  agree  with  its  antecedent 


SOLECISMS.  183 

(the  noun  which  it  represents)  in  number :  "  Let  each  take 
his  turn,"  "  Nobody  should  praise  himself" 

When  the  antecedent  consists  of  two  or  more  nouns  in 
the  singular,  connected  by  and,  expressed  or  implied,  the 
pronoun  should  be  in  the  plural;  when  the  nouns  are 
separated  by  or,  nor,  or  any  other  disjunctive,  the  pronoun 
should  be  in  the  singular ;  thus,  "  James,  John,  and  William 
are  on  their  way  to  school,"  and  "  James,  John,  or  William 
is  on  his  way  to  school."  If  the  antecedent  is  qualified 
by  each  or  every  the  pronoun  should  be  in  the  singular. 

Such  expressions  as  any  one,  each,  every,  either,  neither, 
anybody,  everybody,  and  nobody,  when  used  as  antecedents, 
require  a  singular  pronoun  ;  thus,  "  Has  anybody  a  pencil 
in  his  pocket  ?  "  "  Every  one  has  his  troubles." 

Each  other  is  used  with  reference  to  two  persons  or 
things,  one  another  with  reference  to  more  than  two. 
"  The  guests  gave  one  another  mementoes  of  the  occasion," 
is  preferable  to  "  The  guests  gave  each  other  mementoes  of 
the  occasion."  Some  very  good  authorities,  however,  use 
them  interchangeably.  Either  is  one  of  two,  any  is  one 
of  any  number.  Neither  and  none  are  distinguished  in  the 
same  way.  None  is  also  used  in  the  plural  number ;  as 
"  None  are  so  blind  as  those  who  will  not  see." 

Which  and  that  are  often  confounded  by  inexperienced 
writers.  The  general  rule  is  to  use  which  as  explanatory, 
that  is,  to  introduce  a  new  fact,  and  that  as  restrictive, 
that  is,  to  limit  an  idea  already  expressed.  In  other 
words,  when  and  with  the  personal  pronoun  it  or  they  can 
be  substituted  for  the  relative,  use  which.  Thus,  "  He 
took  all  the  books  which  were  on  the  table,"  means  that 
he  took  all  the  books,  and  that  they  were  on  the  table ; 
but  if  we  say,  "  He  took  all  the  books  that  were  on  the 
table,"  we  mean  that  he  took  only  those  books  that  were 
on  the  table.  In  some  cases,  however,  euphony  demands 
the  use  of  which  instead  of  that ;  thus,  "  That  book  which 
you  spoke  of  "  sounds  better  than  "  That  book  that  you 
spoke  of."  That  is  preferable  after  same,  very,  all,  the 
interrogative  who,  and  the  superlatives  of  weight,  meas- 


1 84  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

ure,   and  value ;  "  the  very  book  that   I  wished,"  "  the 
largest  river  that  I  saw,"  etc. 

64.   The  Parts  of  Speech The  use  of  one  part  of 

speech  for  another  is  a  fault  against  which  it  would  seem 
that  no  caution  is  needed,  but  even  a  "  liberal  educa,- 
tion  "  may  not  keep  a  man  from  using  the  noun  suspi- 
cion for  the  verb  suspect,  or  from  saying,  "  It  seemed 
like  the  time  would  never  come,"  for  "  It  seemed  as  if 
the  time  would  never  come."  Countless  other  errors  of 
a  similar  kind  are  to  be  found  in  the  work  of  the  half- 
educated  writers  of  the  day  and  give  it  the  stamp  of 
illiteracy. 

Adjectives  an'd  Adverbs.  —  Most,  which  is  an  adjective  or 
an  intensive,  is  frequently  used  for  the  adverb  almost  (see 
Section  59.  i.  Adjectives  and  Adverbs,  for  the  distinction 
between  most  and  almost}.  This  fault  is  especially  dis- 
figuring in  such  expressions  as,  "I  most  always  take  a  walk 
before  breakfast,"  or  "I  am  most  dead,  I  am  so  tired." 

The  adjective  good  is  often  used  for  the  adverb  well,  as, 
"  I  am  feeling  good'1''  for  "  I  am  feeling  well.'1'' 

The  adjective  real  is  used  for  very  or  really  even  by 
those  who  are  otherwise  careful  in  their  speech ;  for 
example,  "  We  had  a  rea/  good  time,"  should  be  "  We  had 
a  very,  or  a  really,  good  time." 

The  predicate  adjective  is  often  used  for  the  adverb,  or 
the  adverb  for  the  predicate  adjective.  Even  cultivated 
persons  are  sometimes  in  doubt  whether  to  use  an  adjec- 
tive or  an  adverb  after  certain  verbs.  We  say  properly, 
"  He  seems  happy,"  but  not,  "  He  worked  happy,"  and, 
"  The  flower  smells  sweet,"  not,  "  The  flower  smells 
sweetly."  In  general  we  may  have  less  difficulty  if  we 
remember  that  the  qualifying  word  when  referring  to  the 
subject  of  the  verb  should  be  an  adjective;  when  re- 


SOLECISMS.  185 

ferring  to  the  verb,  it  should  be  an  adverb,  thus,  we  say, 
"  He  looked  angry  "  and  "  He  spoke  angrily" 

In  the  sentence,  "  He  feels  badly  over  the  affair,"  badly 
is  preferable  to  bad,  as  the  latter  might  give  rise  to 
ambiguity. 

Verbs  and  Verbals.  —  The  indicative  mood  is  often  used 
where  the  subjunctive  is  preferable.  The  distinction  be- 
tween the  indicative  and  subjunctive  has  been  lessening  as 
the  language  has  lost  its  inflectional  forms.  The  hurried 
writing  of  the  newspapers  has  contributed  further  to  this 
result,  but  good  writers  are  careful  to  avail  themselves 
of  the  subjunctive  to  express  shades  of  meaning  that 
without  it  are  not  easily  made  clear.  When  a  sentence 
or  a  subordinate  clause  expresses  doubt,  a  wish,  indecision, 
or  a  future  contingency  not  a  question,  its  verb  should  be 
in  the  subjunctive.  A  conditional  clause  which  is  not 
future  and  not  contrary  to  fact,  is,  however,  in  the  indica- 
tive. In  the  sentence,  "  If  I  were  he  I  should  not  follow 
that  plan,"  the  verb  of  the  subordinate  clause  is  properly 
subjunctive,  since  the  condition  is  contrary  to  fact.  In 
"  If  that  was  known  to  him  he  did  wisely  in  continuing  his 
march,"  it  is  assumed  that  the  conditional  clause  is  true, 
and  the  verb  is  therefore  indicative. 

The  use  of  the  perfect  infinitive  after  the  past  tense  of 
the  finite  verb  is  a  very  common  error.  The  boy  who 
says,  "  I  hoped  to  have  gone,"  really  declares  that  he 
hoped, after  it  was  too  late.  The  sentence  should  be,  "I 
hoped  to  go,"  since  the  tense  of  the  infinitive  must  be 
determined  by  its  relation  to  the  time  of  the  principal 
verb,  and  it  is  here  a  future  relation.  The  verb  ought 
may  of  course  take  the  perfect  or  present  infinitive  as  the 
sense  requires.  "  He  ought  to  be  more  careful,"  "  You 
ought  to  have  looked  after  him,"  are  both  correct.  But 
the  error  of  using  an .  auxiliary  with  ought,  even  among 
educated  men,  is  a  common  fault.  "He  hadn't  ought  to 
have  done  that,"  is  ungrammatical,  because  ought  itself  is 
a  finite  verb  and  cannot  take  the  auxiliary  had,  which  may 
be  used  only  with  the  participle. 


1 86  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

General  propositions  that  make  no  distinction  as  to 
time  should  be  expressed  in  the  present  tense,  and  when 
the  statement  of  the  truth  is  in  a  subordinate  clause,  the 
tense  of  the  principal  verb  does  not  affect  that  of  the 
subordinate  verb.  "  One  of  the  first  chemical  facts  we 
learned  was  that  water  is  composed  of  oxygen  and  hydro- 
gen," is  correct,  although  at  first  thought  the  past  tense  of 
the  principal  clause  might  seem  to  require  a  past  tense 
in  the  subordinate  clause. 

Care  must  be  taken  to  distinguish  between  the  present 
and  the  future  tenses.  We  often  say  carelessly,  "  I  shall 
be  happy  to  accept  your  invitation,"  when  we  mean,  "  I 
am  happy  to  accept  your  invitation,"  or  "  I  regret  that  a 
previous  engagement  will  prevent  me  from  being  present," 
when  we  mean,  "  I  regret  that  a  previous  engagement 
prevents  me  from  being  present." 

A  verb  is  singular  or  plural  according  to  the  sense  of 
its  subject :  "  The  chairman  and  the  secretary  were  chosen." 
"  The  editor  and  poet  was  given  a  reception."  In  the 
first  of  these  sentences  the  chairman  and  the  secretary 
are  two  distinct  persons,  and  in  the  second  the  editor 
and  poet  are  one.  Frequently  a  singular  noun  is  fol- 
lowed by  a  plural  expression,  qualifying  or  parenthetical, 
and  the  tendency  is  to  make  the  verb  plural  to  agree 
-with  this  expression.  This,  of  course,  has  no  justification, 
but  often  it  will  be  found  better  to  change  the  sentence 
so  as  to  avoid  the  suggestion  of  plurality,  since  a  sen- 
tence which  at  first  seems  to  be  incorrect  is  unpleasant, 
even  though  a  second  reading  shows  that  it  is  gram- 
matical. "  The  wish  of  many  others  was  what  influ- 
enced him,"  "  Henry  Law,  with  a  number  of  his  friends, 
has  formed  a  new  telephone  company,"  are  correct  sen- 
tences. The  second,  however,  would  be  better  in  this 
form :  "  Henry  Law  and  a  number  of  his  friends  have 
formed  a  new  telephone  company,"  unless  the  writer 
wishes  especially  to  emphasize  the  subordinate  rela- 
tion of  the  friends  in  the  enterprise.  Collective  nouns 
are  followed  by  plural  verbs  when  the  things  for 


SOLECISMS.  187 

which  the  noun  stands  are  thought  of  as  separate  parts 
of  the  whole.  "  The  army  was  slow  in  taking  position," 
and  "  The  army  to  a  man  were  dissatisfied  with  the 
arrangements  for  distributing  the  plunder,"  are  both  cor- 
rect. 

65.   Redundant  and  Incomplete  Expressions. 

By  a  redundant  expression  we  mean  an  expression  that 
is  not  needed  to  complete  the  sense  ;  in  other  words,  a 
superfluous  expression.  An  expression  is  incomplete 
when  some  word  or  words  are  omitted  which  are  neces- 
sary to  complete  the  construction  or  the  sense. 

A  noun  like  •'  man "  or  "boy"  when  referring  to  a 
class  should  not  have  the  article  a  before  it,  especially 
after  the  expressions  kind  of  and  sort  of.  We  say  properly, 
"  That  sort  of  man,"  not  "  That  sort  of  a  man,"  or  "  He 
is  not  worthy  the  name  of  gentleman,"  not  "  He  is  not 
worthy  the  name  of  a  gentleman."  On  the  other  hand, 
the  omission  of  the  definite  or  the  indefinite  article  is  often 
the  occasion  of  ambiguity.  When  several  words  in  the 
same  construction  refer  to  persons  or  things  which  must 
be  considered  separately,  the  article  should  be  used  before 
each.  In  the  sentence  "It  is  the  hope  of  the  statesman 
and  of  the  scholar,"  it  is  clear  that  the  statesman  and  the 
scholar  are  not  one  person,  as  might  be  properly  under- 
stood if  the  sentence  were  written  without  the  second  the, 
thus,  "  It  is  the  hope  of  the  statesman  and  scholar." 
Likewise  we  should  say  "  I  have  a  history  and  a  geom- 
etry," otherwise  we  should  understand  the  history  and 
geometry  to  be  one  book. 

When  reference  is  made  to  a  class  as  a  whole  and  as 
distinct  from  other  classes,  or  to  a  particular  object  repre 
senting  the  class,  the  definite  article  should  be  used,  as, 
"  The  dog  is  my  favorite  animal ;  "  but  the  nouns  man  and 
woman  are  used  without  the  article. 

When  the  participle  is  used  as  an  abstract  noun,  it  is 


1 88  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

preceded  by  the  definite  article  and  followed  by  the 
preposition  of,  but  when  used  as  a  gerund  both  article 
and  preposition  are  omitted,  thus,  "  The  reading  of  books 
will  not  necessarily  result  in  culture."  "  Upon  hearing 
my  name  he  recognized  me." 

Many  of  the  common  prepositions,  such  as  on,  into,  up, 
over,  etc.,  are  often  used  as  adverbs,  after  verbs,  and  are 
redundant,  thus,  "  The  firm  failed  up"  "  We  will  do  this 
later  on"  and  "  The  question,  if  examined  into,  could  be 
easily  answered." 

The  use  of  and  before  a  relative  prbnoun  is  superfluous 
when  it  does  not  connect  the  relative  clause  to  a  pre- 
ceding relative  clause  having  like  relation  to  a  common 
antecedent,  as  in  the  following  sentence ;  "  The  picture 
reminded  Rip  of  an  old  Flemish  painting  in  the  parlor 
of  Dominie  Van  Schaick,  and  which  had  been  brought 
over  from  Holland  at  the  time  of  the  settlement."  In 
this  case  the  sentence  is  improved  by  leaving  out  the 
and. 

The  use  of  a  double  subject  is  another  fault  of  redun- 
dancy found  in  the  work  of  careless  writers,  as,  "  The 
horse,  she  was  frightened  and  ran  away."  The  double 
subject  is  a  common  construction  in  the  English  of  two 
and  three  centuries  ago.  In  the  King  James  version  of 
the  Bible,  we  find  "  The  woman  whom  thou  gavest  to 
be  with  me,  she  gave  me  of  the  tree,  and  I  did  eat,"  but 
such  a  construction  is  no  longer  in  good  use. 

The  fault  of  employing  a  phrase  or  a  dependent  relative 
clause  as  a  sentence  has  been  noticed  in  a  preceding 
chapter.  The  inexperienced  writer  should  guard  against 
this  fault.  Sometimes  the  relative  has  no  other  antecedent 
than  the  general  meaning  of  the  preceding  clause,  as  in 
the  following:  "By  this  mishap  the  dinner  party  was 
broken  up,  which  troubled  our  host  very  much."  This 
usage  has  the  sanction  of  some  good  writers,  but  the  gen- 
eral practice  of  the  more  careful  is  against  it.  The  fault 
can  usually  be  remedied  by  the  simple  device  of  adding 
an  antecedent  for  the  relative,  thus,  "  By  this  mishap  the 


SOLECISMS.  189 

dinner  party  was  broken  up,  a  result  which  troubled  our 
host  very  much." 

A  frequent  and  very  unpleasant  fault  of  some  writers  is 
that  of  omitting  a  necessary  part  of  the  verb.  This  usually 
occurs  when  two  distinct  auxiliary  verbs  are  used  with  one 
participle  to  complete  them  both!  If  the  auxiliaries  take 
the  same  participle  after  them,  this  will  do ;  but  if  they  re- 
quire different  participles,  this  construction  will  not  answer, 
as  in  this,  "  I  never  have  and  never  shall  do  that."  Evi- 
dently, as  the  sentence  is  expressed,  do  is  understood  with 
have,  an  absurd  construction.  The  sentence  should  read. 
"  I  never  have  done  and  never  shall  do  that."  This  fault 
of  omitting  important  words  assumes  many  forms,  often 
peculiarly  vexing  because  of  the  difficulty  of  supplying  the 
necessary  words  without  making  the  sentence  stiff ;  but 
such  a  sentence  as  the  one  here  quoted  is  enough  to  de- 
stroy a  sensitive  reader's  pleasure  for  many  pages. 

Other  words,  such  as  prepositions,  adverbs,  and  con- 
nectives necessary  to  the  construction,  are  sometimes 
omitted :  "  If  you  want  something  done,  write  A  your 
friend."  "  You  look  very  /\  pleased."  We  cannot  be 
too  careful  in  avoiding  such  errors. 

66.  Connectives  and  Correlatives.  —  The  use  of  con- 
nectives in  an  improper  sense  may  easily  obscure  the 
thought,  or  give  a  shade  of  meaning  not  intended. 

The  rule  of  English  speech,  that  two  negative's  make  an 
affirmative,  is  violated  by  the  writer  who  uses  nor  for  or  in 
a  clause  that  already  contains  a  negative.  "  He  could  not 
be  content  to  go  nor  to  stay,"  should  be,  "  He  could  not 
be  content  to  go  or  to  stay,"  since  the  "  not "  modifying 
the  principal  verb  is  a  negative  for  the  whole  sentence.  If 
we  expand  the  infinitives  to  finite  verbs  in  a  like  sentence, 
"  He  was  not  willing  that  he  should  go  or  that  he  should 
stay,"  the  same  law  holds  true.  Occasionally  the  force  of 
the  negative  will  be  expended  in  the  first  clause,  when  the 


1 90  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC, 

second  may  require  not.  "  He  did  not  go  at  three  o'clock, 
as  he  had  intended,  nor  did  he  start  that  night." 

The  correct  pairs  of  conjunctive  particles  or  correlatives 
are  not  only —  but  also,  either — or,  neither  —  nor,  etc. 

It  is  a  common  error  with  young  writers  to  use  but  as 
the  correlative  with  not  only.  But  also  is  the  correct  ex- 
pression, since  the  first  of  the  two  correlatives,  not  only, 
implies  that  the  relation  between  the  clauses  or  phrases  is 
distinctly  not  disjunctive  in  such  sort  as  to  require  but 
alone.  "  He  knew  not  only  what  should  be  done,  but  also 
how  he  could  do  it,"  illustrates  this  very  well,  the  second 
clause  being  in  the  way  of  addition  to  the  preceding  and 
requiring  and  rather  than  but,  if  the  not  only  were  re- 
moved and  choice  had  to  be  made  between  the  two. 

In  the  same  way  we  should  use  either — or,  and  neither 
—  nor.  It  is  incorrect  to  say  "  He  neither  knows  or  cares 
what  becomes  of  him,"  and  "  It  is  not  either  agreeable 
nor  convenient  for  me  to  go  with  you."  We  should  say 
rather  "  He  neither  knows  nor  cares  what  becomes  of 
him,"  and  "It  is  neither  agreeable  nor  convenient  for  me 
to  go  with  you." 

Without  and  except  are  prepositions,  and  should  not  be 
used  for  the  conjunction  unless.  "  I  cannot  do  this  without 
your  help,"  "  I  cannot  do  this  unless  you  help  me,"  illus- 
trate the  distinction  in  use  between  them. 

As  is  preceded  by  so  in  all  negative  statements,  other- 
wise by  as.  It  should  never  be  used  for  that.  The  fol- 
lowing sentence  illustrates  the  correct  use  of  the  two 
words :  "  It  is  as  good  as  could  be  expected,  but  not  so 
good  as  you  promised."  The  faulty  use  of  as  for  that, 
a  not  uncommon  mistake,  is  shown  in  this  sentence : 
"  I  do  not  know  as  we  have  any  reason  for  believing  that." 
The  use  of  as  as  a  relative  pronoun  following  such  in 
the  same  clause  may  be  noted. 

Careless  writers  often  select  the  wrong  preposition  for 
the  shade  of  meaning  which  they  wish  to  express.  Terms 
indicating  comparison  employ  different  prepositions  to  in- 
dicate differences  in  the  manner  of  making  the  compari- 


SOLECISMS.  191 

son.  The  verb  to  compare  is  followed  by  the  preposition 
with  to  stKxw  degree  of  excellence,  and  by  to  to  show  re- 
semblance. "  He  compared  the  Capitol  at  Washington 
with  other  great  buildings  of  the  world."  "  We  might 
compare  a  great  river  system  to  the  arteries  of  the  human 
body."  The  verb  to  differ  takes  with  when  the  difference 
is  a  matter  of  opinion,  —  "I  must  confess  that  I  still 
differ  with  you  in  that  matter," -— and  from  or  among 
when  it  has  to  do  with  appearance  or  with  fact.  "  In  per- 
sonal characteristics  they  differed  greatly  among  them- 
selves." "  They  differed  from  each  other  as  much  as 
brother  and  sister  can."  The  adjective  different  should 
be  followed  by  from  and  not  by  than. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that  between  should  be  used  only 
in  relation  to  two  objects,  though  both  of  these  may  have 
the  plural  form.  Among  should  be  used  when  the  rela- 
tion to  be  expressed  has  to  do  with  more  than  two.  The 
preposition  off  is  frequently  used  in  connection  with  from 
or  of.  "  He  -jumped  off  from  the  box  "is  a  construction 
that  is  both  awkward  and  incorrect.  One  preposition  is 
sufficient,  and  it  may  be  said  that,  in  general,  when  two 
prepositions  are  used  properly  together  one  of  them  is 
really  an  adverb,  as  in  "He  came  down  from  the  hill." 
According  to  and  others  of  like  character  are  phrase  prepo- 
sitions, and  not  several  prepositions  used  together  with 
their  separate  meanings. 

There  is  another  fault  in  the  use  of  prepositions  against 
which  it  is  more  difficult  to  guard,  a  fault  illustrated  in 
this  sentence  :  "  Where  did  you  take  the  package  to  ?  " 
Where,  an  adverb,  cannot  properly  be  the  object  of  a 
preposition.  A  substantive  should  be  substituted ;  or  the 
sentence  should  be  re-written  with  the  omission  of  the 
preposition  "  to." 
67.  Miscellaneous  Errors. 

An  obscure  violation  of  the  rule  that  two  negatives  make 
an  affirmative  is  that  involved  in  the  use  of  not  with  the 
words  hardly,  scarcely,  and  barely.  "  They  were  hardly  able 
to  get  here  on  time,"  expresses  the  difficulties  experienced 


1 92  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

in  coming;  and  the  addition  of  a  negative,  "  They  were  not 
hardly  able  to  get  here  on  time"  denies  the*difficulties  in- 
stead of  making  them  more  emphatic,  as  the  writer  intends. 

Another  common  error  is  the  use  of  than  after  such 
words  as  hardly  and  scarcely.  For  example  :  "  Scarcely 
had  the  clouds  cleared  away  than  the  sun  came  out." 
Than  implies  comparison,  and  requires  an  adjective  or  an 
adverb  of  comparison  before  it.  We  may  properly  say, 
"  No  sooner  had  the  clouds  cleared  away  than  the  sun 
came  out."  A  careful  distinction  should  be  made  between 
the  comparative  and  the  superlative  degrees  of  compari- 
son. The  comparative  degree  is  used  when  two  persons 
or  things  are  compared,  and  the.  superlative  when  more 
than  two  are  compared.  We  may  say  "  Of  two  evils 
choose  the  less,"  and  "  Of  several  evils  choose  the  least." 
We  should  be  equally  careful  to  avoid  giving  comparative 
and  superlative  forms  to  adjectives  and  adverbs  that  are 
incapable  of  comparison.  Such  adjectives  as  dead, perfect, 
unanimotts,  and  inseparable  express  absolute  quality,  and 
are  therefore  incapable  of  degree.  It  is  ridiculous  to  say 
that  one  thing  is  deader  or  more  perfect  than  another. 
What  we  mean  is,  that  one  thing  is  more  nearly  dead  or 
more  nearly  perfect  than  another. 

The  pronouns  in  self,  such  as  myself,  himself,  herself, 
themselves,  should  not  be  used  for  the  corresponding  per- 
sonal pronouns..  We  may  say  correctly,  "  My  brother  and 
I  went  out  for  a  walk,"  not  "  My  brother  and  myself  went 
out  for  a  walk."  The  pronoun  in  self  is  used  properly  either 
for  emphasis  or  reflexive ly,  that  is,  referring  to  the  sub- 
ject of  the  clause  in  which  it  stands.  We  may  say,  "  I 
myself  saw  the  accident,"  and  "  He  gave  himself  up  to 
the  authorities." 

The  adjective  pronouns  this  and  that  should  agree  in 
number  with  what  they  limit  or  represent ;  thus  we  say 
"  That  kind  of  people  "  or  "  Those  kinds  of  people,"  and 
"  That  sort  of  thing,"  not  "  Those  sort  of  things." 

When  to  is  used  as  a  part  of  the  infinitive  no  word 
should  intervene  between  it  and  the  verb  itself.  The  use 


SOLECISMS.  193 

of  the  "cleft  infinitive,"  as  it  is  called,  is  gaining  ground, 
but  the  sanction  of  good  use  cannot  do  away  with  the  in- 
herent awkwardness  of  such  sentences  as  the  following : 
"  He  told  the  scout  to  carefully  reconnoiter  and  to 
promptly  report."  Writers  of  the  better  sort  do  not  yield 
to  the  temptation  to  employ  such  loose  phrasing. 

Place  the  word  only  as  near  as  possible  to  the  word 
which  it  modifies.  "  He  only  would  lend  me  the  book," 
may  be  interpreted  in  two  ways. 

Adverbial  phrases  should  be  carefully  placed.  "  He 
might  have  gone  on  his  bicycle,  with  great  propriety,  or 
with  his  carriage,"  is  an  instance  of  careless  arrangement. 

A  pronoun  should  refer  plainly  to  its  antecedent.  In 
the  two  following  sentences  there  is  room  for  doubt  as  to 
the  meaning :  "  He  showed  me  a  box  in  his  desk  which 
held  many  treasures."  "  John  could  not  go  to  his  brother 
because  he  had  yellow  fever." 

Avoid  constructions  in  which  the  subjects  differ  in  per- 
son or  number.  "  Neither  you  nor  I  am  responsible," 
should  be  "  Neither  of  us  is  responsible." 

EXERCISES. 

1.  Define  a  sentence.     What   do  you  think  to  be  the 
important  point  to  be  considered  in  the  definition  ?     Why 
cannot  any  group  of  words  constitute  a  sentence? 

2.  Define    a  solecism.     What  do  you   understand  by 
"  an  error  of  construction  "  or  "  an  error  of  syntax  "  ?     Do 
solecisms  properly  belong  to  rhetoric  ?     WThy  should  they 
be  given  in  a  chapter  of  rhetoric  ? 

3.  What  do  you  mean  by  inflection  ?     Of  what  does 
the  inflection  of  nouns  consist  ?     How  does  this  compare 
with  the  inflection  of  pronouns  and  of  verbs  ?     How  does 
the  inflection  of  nouns  in  English  compare  with  the  inflec- 
tion  of    nouns    in    other  languages   with    which  you  are 
acquainted  ? 

4.  What  errors  are  we  liable  to  make  in  using  nouns 
and  pronouns  ?     Why  is  there  more  liability  to  error  in 


194  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

using  pronouns  than  in  using  nouns  ?  How  would  your 
answer  apply  to  the  use  of  verbs  ?  What  do  you  mean  by 
a  redundant  expression?  An  incomplete  expression? 

5.  What  is   the   regular  rule    in  English  for   forming 
the  plural  number  of  nouns  ?     How  do  you  account  for 
such  plurals  as  men,  children,  oxen,  geese  and  mice  ?     Bring 
to  the  class  a  fist  of  nouns  that  are  used  only  in  the  plural, 
also  a  list  of  nouns  ending  in  "  s  "  that  are  singular. 

6.  WTith  the  help  of  the  dictionary  write  the  plurals  of 
the  following  nouns :  — 

stratum,  curriculum,  animalcule,  index,  alumnus,  mathe- 
matics, beau,  phenomenon,  cherub,  dictum,  datum,  ne- 
cropolis, erratum,  larva,  vertebra,  maximum,  radius, 
stamen,  spectrum,  hypothesis,  analysis,  aide-de-camp, 
focus,  ignis-fatuus,  oasis,  crisis,  addendum. 

7.  Write  the  possessive  case,  singular  and  plural,  of: 
fairy,  lady,    mouse,  ox,    man,  woman,    witness,  princess, 
thief,  Dickens,  Jones,  Burgess,  brother-in-law.     Write  the 
possessive  case  of:  Jones    the  grocer,  Prince  of  Wales, 
Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  man-of-war,  Smith  and  Thomas, 
William  the  Conqueror. 

8.  Mention  the  different  kinds  of  pronouns.     Make  a 
list  of  the  personal  pronouns,  giving  the  nominative  and 
the  objective   cases,  singular  and  plural,  of   each.     Dis- 
tinguish between  who  and  whom,  who  and  which,  whose 
and  of  which,  which  and  that.     Mention  the  pronouns  in 
se/f,  and  tell  how  they  should  be  used. 

9.  What  is  the  difference  between  an  adjective  and  an 
adverb  ?     What  do  you  understand  by  comparison  ?    Why 
should  some  adjectives  and  adverbs  be  incapable  of  com- 
parison ?     How  would   you  distinguish  between  a  verbal 
noun  and  a  present  participle  ? 

10.  Write  the  principal  parts  of  the  following  verbs  : 
awake,  bear,  begin,  bid,  burst,  clothe,  dare,  do,  eat,  flee, 
fly,  go,  lie,  lay,  sit,  see,  take,  go,  drink,  sing,  rise,  throw. 

n.  Write  sentences  using  the  past  tense  and  the  past 
participle  of  each  of  the  following  verbs :  bear,  bid,  do, 
eat,  give,  drink,  lie  (recline),  see,  dive,  swim,  set. 


SOLECISMS.  195 

1 2 .    Correct  the  errors  in  the  following  sentences,  and 
be  prepared  to  give  reasons  for  your  corrections. 

1.  A   Mississippi  teacher   writes   us   saying  that   at    the 
County  institute  a  number  of  the  teachers  agreed  to  each  in- 
vest five  dollars  of  their  own  money  in  a  library   for   their 
schools. 

2.  He  wished  to  have  been  present  but  he  knew  that  he 
had  ought  to  stay  at  home. 

3.  We  were  most  there. 

4.  This  kind  of  an  expression  is  called  a  substantive. 

5.  They  do  not  want  to  do  the  work  nor  to  have  anyone 
else  do  it. 

6.  The  jury  was  of  widely  different  opinions  in  regard  to 
the  testimony  of  the  last  witness. 

7.  They  did  not  know  as  they  would  come  until  just  before 
starting,  and  so  we  did  not  expect  them. 

8.  It  looks  like  they  had  not  yet  found  out  the   proper 
method  of  mixing  the  ingredients. 

9.  We  found  the  new  play  different  than  we  had  expected. 

10.  Hilary  jumped  off  of  the  car  while  it  was  yet  in  motion. 

11.  They  did  not  know  where  the  book  was  at. 

12.  That  picture  looks  like  you  do  before  you  have  combed 
your  hair  in  the  morning. 

13.  When  they  first  tried  to  cross  the  bridge  they  found   it 
would  not  support  them  without  it  was  repaired. 

14.  We  were  surprised  at  the  doctor  coming,  for  Mabel  had 
been  well  for  nearly  a  week. 

15.  The  master  taught  his  boys  other  things  than  were  to 
be  found  in  books.     From  him  they  got  the  story  of  Arnold 
von   Winkelried    holding    against  his  breast    the   Austrian 
speaVs.     From  him,  too,  came  their  knowledge  of  the  cuckoo 
laying  its  eggs  in  the  nests  of  other  birds.     Without  he  had 
inspired  them  to  find  ever  new  pleasures  in  wood  and  stream, 
they  would  have  missed  the  best  joys  of  their  boyhood. 

1 6.  If  he  was  not  known  well  here  I  think  he  would  have 
little  difficulty  in  making  the  arrangement. 

17.  He  said  that  the  laws  of  the  universe  were  immutable. 

1 8.  There   were   but  seven   of   us  against  a  score  of  the 
enemy,  and  as  we  looked  at  each  other  fear  sprang  into  the 
face  of  every  one. 

19.  He  expressed  the  wish  that  the  earth  was  even  larger 
than  it  is. 

20.  Hawley  and  I  had  argued  the  matter  for  two  hours, 
and  now  as  we  looked  at  one  another  we  knew  that  we  were 
no  nearer  a  conclusion  than  before. 


[g6  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

21.  He  wished  the  successful  candidate  to  be  he,  but  he 
was  not  willing  to  work  for  him  openly. 

22.  The  pride  of  all   the   midland  counties  were  broken 
completely  in  his  downfall. 

23.  Words  of  condolence  over  anothers  misfortune  come 
readily  to  the  lips  of  sympathy. 

24.  When  she  was  told  that  it  was  him  her  concern  in  the 
matter  ended. 

25.  They  were  very  an-xious  to  find  out  who  the  committee 
had  chosen. 

26.  He  very  warmly  expressed  his  liking  for  a  horse,  say- 
ing that  he  preferred  it  to  any  other  animal. 

27.  He  did   that  among    all  the    proposed    plans  which 
seemed  best  to  him. 

28.  He  was  real  irritated  by  our  apparent  unwillingness  to 
accompany  him. 

29.  There  were  not  hardly  any  people  there,  and  so  they 
did  not  have  no  performance. 

30.  All  along  he  had  suspicioned  that  his  friend  was  not 
being  true  to  him. 

31.  There  are  not  hardly  any  leaves  left  on  the  trees. 

32.  That  is  the  prettiest  watch  I  most  ever  saw. 

33.  He  did  not  give  me  the  rose  nor  the  geranium. 

34.  The  jury  were  composed  largely  of   friends  of  the 
defendant. 

35.  The  work  was  most  done  before  he  came. 

36.  Such  a  sort  of  an   explanation  was  unsatisfactory  to 
every  one  concerned. 

37.  The  council  has  agreed    upon  a  proper  form  for  the 
ordinance  and  will  pass  it  this  evening. 

38.  To   fully  understand    the   situation   he   knew  that  he 
must  give  it  closer  attention. 

39.  We  presume  it  is  due  largely  to  the  fact  that  the  lamp 
lighter  is  forbidden  to  light  the  lamps  only  when  instructed 
to  do  so  by  the  committee  appointed  by  the  mayor. 

40.  The  recent  crusade  made  by  the  women  of  Emerson 
against  the  merchants  of  that  place  selling  or  giving  away  to 
the  young  boys  cigarette  papers  and   cigars   might  well   be 
imitated  by  the  good  ladies  of  our  town. 

41.  There   has   been   considerable   complaint  recently  on 
account  of  the  street  lamps  not  being  lighted  on  dark  nights. 

42.  He   planned  to   have   studied  law  a  little  earlier,  but 
unavoidable  hindrances  prevented. 

43.  The  commanding  officer  hadn't  ought  to  have  exposed 
his  men  so  carelessly. 

44.  The  bridge  across  the  river  was  so  frail  that  to  com- 
pletely rebuild  it  seemed  more  economical  than  to  repair  it. 


SOLECISMS.  197 

45.  The  horses  we  bought  were  so  fine  a  driving  team  as 
*ve  ever  owned,  but  they  were  not  as  easily  managed  as  we 
were  assured  they  would  be. 

46.  Neither  you  or  I  are  prepared  to  settle  that  question. 

47.  He  said  that  he  would  look   after   the  government's 
interest  in  the  matter. 

48.  He  said  that  he  had  saw  the  robbing  when  he  done  it. 

49.  The  walks  on  the  main  street  were  almost  impassable, 
they  being  so  crowded. 

50.  When  they  done  so  difficult  a  thing  and  which  no  one 
expected  they  would  do. 

51.  The  Bucentaur  was  the  Doge's  boat,  who  went  out  in 
it  to  drop  the  ring  into  the  sea. 

52.  Thousands  of  buffaloes,  united  in  one  great  herd,  so 
vast  a  whole  that  the  eye  could  hardly  perceive  its  immensity, 
a  single  creature  in  seeming,  was  going  southward. 

53.  Nobody  can  have  an   adequate  idea  concerning  any 
person  or  thing  which  they  cannot  see  and  come  into  contact 
with. 

54.  Under    such    conditions    one   would   not    expect    the 
marriage  relation  to  reach  very  high  ethical  ground,  nor  ideal 
domestic  and  social  conditions. 

55.  A  reward  of  $10.00  will  be  paid  by  the  trustees  of  the 
High  School  for  the  arrest  and    conviction  of  the   persons 
who  have  been,  or  may  in  the  future,  break  into  the  High 
School  building,  or  who  enter  the  same  by  stealth. 

56.  The  bridge  was  said  to  be  very  dangerous,  which  was 
sufficient  occasion  for  our  taking  the  other  road. 

57.  My  memoranda  on  this  matter  is  at  the  house. 

58.  There  stood   a  tall,  spare  woman,  her  hair  streaked 
with  gray  and  firm  lines  about  her  mouth. 

59.  He  says  that  he  don't  understand  why  you  were  so 
angry. 

60.  If  I  was  you,  I'd  not  permit  it. 

61.  The  two  men  were  much    alike  in  their  public  char- 
acters, but  in  private  life  Morris  was  the  most  honorable  and 
straightforward. 

62.  We  did  not  go  to  see  him  as  the  doctor  said  he  felt  too 
bad  to  receive  visitors. 

63.  We  thought  we  would  go  across  by  some  trees  like  the 
squirrels  do. 

64.  He  come  up   to  me  on    the    street    and    apologized 
volubly. 

65.  If  you   will   forgive   me   forgetting  your   errand    this 
time,  I  will  be  more  careful  hereafter. 

66.  Lucy  is  so  prompt  in  answering  letters.     Those  who 
once  write  to  her  always  want  to  continue  the  correspondence. 


198  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

67.  He  explained  the  matter,  so  they  let  him  go. 

68.  Bertha  said   that  the  decorations  were  just  perfectly 
lovely. 

69.  Hard  work  only  brings  success  at  last. 

70.  In  doing  as  he  did  he  followed  not  only  your  advice 
but  his  own  wishes. 

71.  I  will  pay  $25  for  the  detection  and  evidence  sufficient 
to   convict   the    person  or   persons  who   stole   or   killed   my 
English  bull  terrier,  color  white,  and  wearing  a  plain  leather 
color,  weighs  about  30  pounds,  and  answers  to  the  name  of 
Mack. 

72.  Another  fire   will   catch    us   some   night,   in   the   very 
place  we  are  not  looking  for,  and  then  all  we  can  do  is  stand 
off  and  see  it  burn. 

73.  We*  are  heartily  in  favor  of,  and  will  do  all  we  can  in 
our  weak  way,  to  have  the  coming  session  of  the  legislature 
enact  a  law  with  heavy  fines   and  jail   penalties  for  every 
person  who  shoots,  entraps,  or  kills  prairie  chickens  at  any 
season  of  the  year. 

74.  The  walls   were   tinted    white   and    there  were  white 
curtains  to  the  windows. 

75.  The  calm  blue  vault  of  heaven  is  dotted  by  stars. 

76.  These  apples  are  not  as  ripe  as  those  we  had  yesterday. 

77.  The  ruins  of  the  castle  looked  like  we  were  told,  but 
in  looking  off  from  its  highest  p"®int  we  saw  a  more  enchant- 
ing prospect  than  we  had  been  led  to  expect. 

78.  It  looks  like  it  would  rain. 

79.  We  turned  the  matter  over  to  Dixon  &  Co.,  who  we 
had  reason  to  believe  in  every  way  reliable. 

80.  I  do  not  remember  of  seeing  any  such  book  as  you 
speak  of  there. 

81.  I  wish  I  knew  where  that  July  magazine  went  to. 

82.  Without  you  take  the  initiative  in  the  matter,  there  is 
no  hope  of  us  being  able  to  carry  it  through. 

83.  There  is  the  boy  which  I  spoke  of. 

84.  If  it  be  advisable,  as  it  certainly  is,  we  need  delay  no 
longer. 

85.  Before  igniting  a  jet  of  hydrogen  it  will  always  be  well 
to  make  certain  that  it  is  not  mixed  with  oxygen. 

86.  Whoever  wishes  to  have  seats  on  the  opening  night 
must  get  their  tickets  at  once. 

87.  The  pleasure  of  all  present,  reflected  in  countless  ways 
from  the  sea  of  faces  before  them,  were   enough  to  repay 
them  for  the  trouble  they  had  taken. 

88.  We  did  not  know  who  the  instructions  had  been  given 
to,  nor  who  we  should  seek  for  information. 

89.  They  were  real  pleased  by  the  hope  of  release. 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  199 


CHAPTER    XI. 

THE    FORMS    OF    DISCOURSE.1 

68.    What  Distinguishes  one  Form  of  Writing   from 

Another In  treating  of  the  various  qualities  that  make 

written  discourse  effective,  rhetoricians  have  found  it 
convenient  to  assume  an  arbitrary  division  of  all  writing 
having  literary  character  into  a  number  of  classes,  such 
as  Exposition,  Argumentation,  Description,  Narration, 
and  Criticism.  It  is  not  often  that  any  composition 
belongs  wholly  to  any  one  of  these  divisions  ;  but  discus- 
sion of  them  is  made  the  easier  by  such  division,  inas- 
much as  the  qualities  that  are  essential  to  a  good 
argument  are  not  those  required  for  good  description  or 
criticism.  Briefly,  exposition  is  an  explaining  of  some- 
thing, and  in  it  the  most  important  quality  is  clearness. 
Argumentation  differs  from  exposition  in  being  an 
attempt  to  explain  convincingly  something  about  which 
there  may  be  difference  of  opinion.  Description  con- 
cerns itself  with  making  clear  the  appearance  of  some 
material  thing,  and  is  distinguished  from  exposition 
largely  by  the  fact  that  the  use  or  operation  of  the 
thing  described  is  not  explained.  Narration  gives  ac- 

1  The  Forms  of  Discourse  are  discussed  further  in  Part  III. 


200  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

count  of  a  series  of  happenings,  and  the  fundamental 
necessity  is  that  the  events  shall  be  vividly  presented 
and  that  the  order  of  occurrence  shall  be  made  clear. 
Criticism  is  the  expression  of  opinion  concerning  liter- 
ary or  artistic  productions,  and  ordinarily  attempts  to 
give  the  tone  of  the  production  criticised  and  to  show 
sufficient  reason  for  the  opinions  expressed. 

69.    Description In    describing    anything,  whether 

animate  or  inanimate,  the  writer's  object  is  to  convey 
to  the  mind  of  the  reader  a  mental  picture  such  as  exists 
in  his  own  mind.  This  may  be  done  by  giving  details 
of  the  thing  described,  description  by  inventory,  by 
telling  how  it  appears  from  different  points  of  view,  the 
traveler's  view,  or  by  dwelling  upon  some  chief  charac- 
teristic of  the  object,  the  fundamental  image.  This 
last  is  the  method  ordinarily  to  be  employed.  Things, 
as  well  as  people,  have  a  certain  individuality  of  their 
own ;  and  this  individuality  it  is  that  distinguishes  them 
in  our  minds  from  other  like  objects  when  the  details  of 
form,  size,  and  color  are  no  longer  remembered.  If, 
after  having  seen  and  read  a  new  face  in  a  passing 
crowd,  we  wish  to  describe  that  face  to  some  one  else, 
we  might  speak  of  the  keen  eyes,  the  straight  lips,  the 
aquiline  nose,  giving  such  details  ,as  our  memory  gath- 
ered from  so  hasty  a  survey ;  but  the  face  would  be 
better  visualized  for  the  reader  if  we  should  call  it  a 
face  of  eagle  hardness.  This  would  present  our  thought 
more  effectively  than  it  could  be  presented  by  the 
greatest  fullness  of  details. 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  2Ot 

"  It  was  growing  gray  in  the  world.  The  dawn  covered, 
with  pale  light  the  outlines  of  the  walls.  The  trees 
along  the  wayside,  the  buildings,  and  the  gravestones 
scattered  here  and  there  began  to  issue  from  the  shade. 
The  road  was  no  longer  quite  empty.  Marketmen  were 
moving  toward  the  gates,  leading  asses  and  mules  laden 
with  vegetables ;  here  and  there  moved  creaking  carts  in 
which  game  was  conveyed.  On  the  road  and  along  both 
sides  of  it  was  a  light  mist  at  the  very  earth,  which  prom- 
ised good  weather.  People  at  some  distance  seemed  like 
apparitions  in  that  mist ;  Vinicius  stared  at  the  slender 
form  of  Lygia,  which  became  more  silvery  as  the  light 
increased." 

HENRY  SIENKIEWICZ  : 

Quo  Vadis,  translated  by  JEREMIAH  CuRTiN.1 

70.    Exercises  in   Descriptive   Writing As   in    the 

foregoing,  description  that  must  have  some  local  color 
in  it  is  generally  best  treated  by  giving  details,  but  these 
should  be  subordinated  to  what  we  may  call  here  the 
atmosphere  of  the  picture.  Employing  that  method, 
write  a  descriptive  essay  of  not  over  three  hundred 
words  on  one  of  the  following  subjects.  Do  not  think 
out  the  details  you  employ  in  describing  the  object. 
See  the  thing  to  be  described  in  your  own  mind,  and 
tell  what" you  see.  Do  not  tell  what  you  know  only  and 
cannot  see'in  the  mental  picture.  Literary,  as  distinct 
from  technical  description,  seeks  to  convey  something 
visualized  in  the  mind  of  the  writer  to  the  mind  of  the 
reader ;  and  as  the  things  merely  known  are  not  a  part 
of  the  writer's  visualization,  they  cannot  be  effective  in 

1  Permission  of  Little,  Brown  &  Co. 


202  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

the  picture  as  reproduced  in  the  mind  of  the  reader. 
Note  with  what  clearness  each  detail  is  pictured  in 
the  quotation  from  Quo  Vadis.  We  are  not  merely 
told  what  was,  but  we  are  made  to  see  the  very  light- 
filled  grayness  of  the  morning.  This  gray  ness  is  the 
fundamental  thing  that  gives  character  to  the  picture. 
The  details  are  subordinated  to  it,  and  yet  have  added 
significance  because  of  it. 

i.  A  snowstorm.  2.  An  old  mill.  3.  A  deserted 
house.  4.  A  garden  of  roses.  5.  A  factory,  6.  An 
ice-bound  river.  7.  A  Syrian  caravan.  8.  A  Chinese 
pagoda.  9.  A  highland  lake.  10.  A  railway  station  at 
train-time. 

Often  only  a  few  details  are  given  in  order  that  those 
of  greater  prominence  may  not  lose  their  distinctness 
in  a  mass  of  things  of  lesser  moment.  On  one  of  the 
following  subjects  write  not  less  than  two  hundred 
words,  describing  by  giving  chief  details.  The  point  of 
view  from  which  a  subject  is  considered  must  always 
be  influential  in  determining  what  are  the  chief  details. 

i.  The  cathedral  close.  2.  The  ragman.  3.  The 
latest  thing  in  hats.  4.  The  village  band.  5.  A  store 

window  at  Christmas.     6.    A  painting  by r-.     7.    The 

old  school-house.  8.  An  Italian  fruit-vender.  9.  The 
library.  10.  The  teacher's  desk.  n.  The  girl  who 
giggles.  12.  A  grove  of  poplars. 

Frequently  a  paragraph  of  description  opens  with 
an  expression  giving  a  fundamental  image  of  the  thing 
to  be  described.  This  may  be  in  the  way  of  compari- 


THE  FORMS   OF  DISCOURSE.  203 

son,  naming  something  which  the  thing  to  be  described 
is  like,  or  a  simple  adjective  phrase  of  description,  or  any 
other  expression  serving  to  convey  briefly  and  forcibly 
the  particular  impression  of  the  thing  described  which 
is  in  the  writer's  mind.  Details  may  then  follow,  if 
fuller  description  is  desirable,  but  care  must  be  taken  not 
to  obliterate  or  dim  the  fundamental  image.  Dickens, 
describing  John  Jasper  when  he  has  received  the  mes- 
sage from  Edwin  Drood  by  the  mouth  of  Mr.  Grew- 
gious,  after  Edwin  Drood's  disappearance,  says  that 
Mr.  Grewgious  "  saw  nothing  but  a  heap  of  torn  and 
miry  clothes  upon  the  floor."  Any  addition  to  this 
would  inevitably  weaken  the  reader's  sense  of  the  com- 
plete mental  prostration  which  came  upon  John  Jasper 
when  Mr.  Grewgious  had  made  his  announcement.  But 
in  the  following  from  Stevenson's  Treasure  Island  the 
direct  description  preceding  the  semicolon  is  materially 
helped  by  the  details  that  follow.  They  strengthen 
the  effect  of  the  fundamental  image  instead  of  oblit- 
erating it. 

A  tall,  strong,  heavy,  nut-brown  man  ;  his  tarry  pig- 
tail falling  over  the  shoulders  of  his  soiled  blue  coat;  his 
hands  ragged  and  scarred,  with  black,  broken  nails,  and 
the  saber  cut  across  one  cheek,  a  dirty,  livid  white. 

In  this  manner  write  one  hundred  and  fifty  words  or 
more  on  one  of  the  following  subjects. 

i.  The  church  spire.  2.  A  Norway  pine.  3.  Some 
moss-covered  rocks.  4.  A  Fourth  of  July  procession. 


2O4  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

5.  An  Indian  chief.  6.  The  town  hall.  7.  A  passenger 
car.  8.  A  dog.  9.  A  tennis  ground.  10.  A  field  of 
wheat,  ii.  A  little  child.  12.  An  old  book.  13.  An 
antique  vase.  14.  A  burned  building.  15.  A  waterfall. 

71.  Narration.  —  A  narrative  may  concern  itself 
either  with  historical  truth  or  with  fiction.  In  the 
former  case  it  must  primarily  be  faithful  to  fact.  Of 
necessity  description  and  characterization  will  often  be 
part  of  the  story,  but  the  writer's  first  endeavor  must 
be  to  know  the  truth  about  his  scenes  and  his  characters. 
The  vivid  realization  of  these  things  will  be  brought 
about  with  more  difficulty  than  in  the  case  of  the  crea- 
tion of  one's  own  brain.  In  fiction  the  imagination  has 
more  play,  and  being  free  to  fill  in  details  as  it  wills, 
it  forms  images  of  character  more  clearly.  A  story,  it 
should  be  remembered,  is  not  ordinarily  a  succession  of 
incidents  ;  it  is  the  expression  of  the  individuality  of  the 
characters,  feeling  in  one  reacting  upon  feeling  in  an- 
other, mood  growing  from  mood,  and  action  following  as 
the  result  of  all.  A  story  should  also  have  a  plot,  or 
such  a  succession  of  incidents  as  will  suggest  a  final 
outcome,  while  concealing  what  that  outcome  is  to  be, 
and  so  arousing  interest. 

A  narrative  may  concern  itself  only  with  a  succession 
of  natural  incidents,  incidents  without  any  expression 
of  human  nature,  or  it  may  be  simply  the  expression  of 
character  showing  itself  in  action.  Sometimes  inci- 
dents follow  one  another  without  any  close  relation  of 
cause  and  effect,  or  they  may  be  wholly  the  result  of  the 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  205 

reaction  of  mood  upon  mood.  When  the  story  concerns 
itself  mainly  with  a  study  of  character,  this  play  of  mood 
upon  mood  will  be  the  prominent  thing.  What  a  man 
does  is  the  result  not  more  of  his  thought  than  of 
the  moods  that  sway  him.  For  most  of  us  the  every- 
day round  of  existence  is  what  our  reason  makes  it,  but 
outside  of  that  we  yield  to  feeling,  doing  more  or  less 
as  it  bids  us  ;  and  the  story  of  a  life  is  the  story  of 
what  it  has  willed  to  do,  rather  than  the  story  of  what 
it  has  done  perfunctorily. 

Among  the  qualities  that  are  essential  in  a  narrative 
which  is  to  hold  the  interest  of  the  reader,  that  of  move- 
ment is  of  prime  importance.  This  is  secured  largely  by 
the  use  of  short,  terse  sentences,  or  sentences  in  which 
there  are  few  subordinate  clauses.  It  is  also  desirable  that 
the  opening  arrest  attention  at  once,  and  that  it  may  do 
this,  explanation  of  the  situation  should,  as  far  as  possible, 
be  given  indirectly  in  the  course  of  the  narrative.  When 
this  is  done  the  narrative  interest  of  the  story  is  not 
delayed.  The  plot  should  be  simple,  curiosity  as-  to  the 
outcome  should  be  aroused  in  the  reader  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible, and  this  curiosity  should  be  maintained  until  the 
end.  If  the  development  of  the  incidents  is  handled 
with  sufficient  reference'  to  this  consideration,  important 
matters  can  be  the  better  massed  at  the  beginning  and 
at  the  end  of  the  story,  where  they  belong.  Descrip- 
tion, when  it  is  required,  should  be  made  subordinate  to 
the  narrative,  and  should  be  such  as  will  give  the  proper 
emphasis  to  the  color  and  meaning  of  the  story.  -  The 


206  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

characters  should  be  few,  and  each  should  have  a  defi- 
nite and  easily  understood  relation  to  the  story.  Incidents 
should  be  developed  in  the  order  of  their  occurrence,  but 
when  they  are  complex,  and  involve  the  doings  of  several 
persons  at  the  same  time,  consideration  must  be  given 
to  the  relation  of  cause  and  effect,  the  cause  preceding 
the  effect. 

72.  Exercises  in  Narration. —  Written  Exercise.— 
On  two  of  the  following  subjects  write  paragraphs  of 
250  to  300  words  each.  Include  such  description  as  is 
required  for  the  understanding  of  the  story,  but  make 
each  a  simple  narrative  free  from  characterization. 
Criticise  both  diction  and  style,  and  be  prepared  to  say 
whether  or  not,  in  your  opinion,  they  are  in  keeping 
with  the  theme. 

i.  A  fire.  2.  An  April  flood.  3.  A  race  for  life. 
4.  Washington's  journey  to  the  French  forts.  5.  A  day's 
outing.  6.  The  arrival  of  the  mail. 

On  each  of  two  of  the  following  subjects  write  a  nar- 
rative of  250  to  300  words,  introducing  one  character 
and  one  only.  Do  not  attempt  to  make  too  many  traits 
of  character  apparent,  but  let  the  few  that  the  narra- 
tive requires  be  clearly  painted.  Close  individualization 
of  character  in  a  narrative  tends  to  delay  its  action. 
Criticise  the  story  for  its  employment  of  short  and  long, 
complex  and  compound  sentences,  keeping  in  mind 
which  of  these  forms  best  produce  the  effect  of  hurry 
and  movement.  Make  the  action  of  the  narrative  as 


THE  FORMS   OF  DISCOURSE.  2O/ 

rapid  as  possible,  so  that  the  story  shall  be  the  thing  of 
first  importance. 

i.  A  raft  in  the  flood.  2.  A  dangerous  leap.  3.  The 
dream  of  Eugene  Aram.  4.  The  prodigal  son.  5.  When 
Albert  learned  to  milk.  6.  Lost  in  the  woods.  7.  Pur- 
sued by  wolves.  8.  A  face  outside  the  window.  9.  A 
girls' party.  10.  Learning  to  ride  a  bicycle,  n.  Coming 
home  from  the  picnic. 

73.  Exposition  concerns  itself  with  explaining  some- 
thing, and  differs  from  description  in  having  particular 
regard  to  the  uses  to  which  a  thing  is  to  be  put,  rather 
than  to  its  appearance.  In  exposition  clearness  is  the 
first,  perhaps  also  the  last,  consideration.  To  make 
another  understand  a  machine,  a  device,  or  a  method 
of  doing  anything  of  any  sort,  is  at  the  best  not  an 
easy  matter.  Much  evidently  depends  on  the  order  of 
treatment,  but  what  that  order  should  be  depends  upon 
the  theme.  In  expounding  the  principle  employed, 
and  the  method  of  applying  it  in  a  mechanical  con- 
trivance, the  more  important  things,  or  those  first  in 
time,  should  generally  come  first  and  the  details  after- 
wards ;  but  in  exposition  of  more  abstract  ideas  that 
order  may  be  reversed.  Only  careful  consideration  of 
the  relation  of  the  various  parts  to  the  whole  can  in  any 
case  determine  what  is  the  proper'  order. 

"  It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  electrolytic  process  of  refining 
copper  is  now  applied  to  between  one-half  and  one-third 
of  all  the  copper  produced  in  the  United  States.  The 
electric  process  separates  the  gold  and  silver  that  may  be 


208  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

present  in  the  copper,  and  deposits  the  copper  in  a  state 
of  great  purity.  To  accomplish  this,  the  unrefined  copper 
from  the  smelter  or  Bessemer  converter  is  cast  into  great 
plates  or  anodes,  weighing  three  hundred  pounds  or 
more  ;  these  anodes  are  suspended  in  tanks  containing  a 
solution  of  copper  sulphate,  opposite  to  cathodes  which 
are  also  copper  plates,  but  very  thin  and  consisting  of 
pure  metal. 

"  The  passage  of  the  electric  current  in  the  proper  direc- 
tion gradually  transfers  the  copper  from  the  anode  plate 
to  the  cathode  plate,  while  all  impurities  are  left  behind. 
The  gold  and  silver  which  are  present  in  the  unrefined 
copper  fall,  during  the  process,  to  the  bottom  of  the  tanks, 
and  are  afterward  collected  and  separated  from  each 
other.  Some  idea  of  the  importance  of  this  method  of 
copper  refining  is  given  by  the  following  facts  relating  to 
the  Anaconda  Copper  Mining  Company's  Montana  re- 
finery."—  The  Cosmopolitan,  February,  1897. 

Observe  that  this  explanation  takes  up  the  larger 
aspects  of  the  case  first,  and  gives  the  reader  a  firm 
grasp  of  each  detail  before  proceeding  to  the  next. 
Observe,  too,  that  the  arrangement  of  these  details  is 
such  as  to  make  clear  the  relation  of  each  to  the  whole, 
so  that  after  each  step  of  the  explanation  the  mind  has 
a  clear  understanding  of  the  electrolytic  apparatus  and 
the  electrolytic  process  so  far  as  the  explanation  of  it 
has  gone.  An  exposition  so  developed  is  coherent,  and 
coherence  is  essential  in  exposition,  as  it  is  in  all  dis- 
course. That  it  is  more  important  in  exposition  than 
in  other  forms  of  writing,  however,  must  be  clear  when 
we  remember  that  a  device,  or  a  process,  or  a  scientific 
generalization,  is  not  explained  for  us  until  we  have 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  209 

grasped  the  significance  of  the  separate  parts-  in  their 
relations  to  one  another  and  to  the  whole. 

74.  Exercises  in  Exposition.  —  On  each  of  two  of  the 
following  subjects  write  250  to  300  words  of  exposition. 
Take  care  to  have  no  more  description  than  is  necessary 
for  clear  explanation.  Be  prepared  to  justify  the  order 
of  treatment  you  adopt. 

i.  A  windmill.  2.  A  twin-screw  steamer.  3.  The 
management  of  a  railroad.  4.  Tennis.  5.  What  con- 
stitutes greatness.  6.  The  influence  of  geography  on 
history.  7.  The  religion  of  the  Egyptians.  8.  How 
mountains  are  formed.  9.  What  causes  volcanoes. 
10.  The  value  of  an  education,  n.  What  are  good 
manners.  12.  Theosophy.  13.  The  follies  of  Christian 
Science.  14.  How  to  entertain  a  guest.  15.  The  value 
of  a  gymnasium.  16.  Success  in  life.  17.  How  to 
deserve  friends.  18.  The  future  of  science.  19.  The 
construction  of  a  cantilever  bridge.  20.  The  dangers  of 
"  scorching." 

"  The  social  settlements  are  very  young  indeed.  As 
compared  with  the  other  four  agencies,  they  have  no 
numerical  part ;  but  their  growth  has  been  so  rapid  of 
late  —  almost  frightfully  rapid  —  that  they  may  be  said  to 
have  passed  the  experimental  stage,  at  least  in  this  sense, 
that  they  have  plainly  come  to  stay.  The  settlements 
have  made  mistakes,  naturally.  They  have  allowed  them- 
selves, in  some  instances,  to  be  inveigled  into  too  much 
almsgiving,  in  others  to  become  too  much  enamored  of 
seeing  the  wheels  go  round,  in  others  to  engage  in  prose- 
lyting, in  still  others  to  compromise  dangerously  their 
independence  by  accepting  dictatorial  financial  support. 
They  are  peculiarly  liable  to  such  diametrically  opposed 
failings  as  melodramatic  over-intenseness  and  cold  dilet- 
tanteism  ;  and  they  have  not  always,  it  must  be  confessed, 


210  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

been  successful  in  avoiding  these  extremes.  The  resi- 
dents are  too  often  immature  boys  and  girls  or  flitting 
faddists. 

"  On  the  other  hand,  they  have  galvanized  some  of  the 
people  about  them  into  a  fairly  regular  participation  in 
healthy  social  pleasures ;  have  been  zealous  in  bringing 
into  their  barren  districts  something  of  painting,  sculp- 
ture, music,  science,  literature,  and  technical  training,  and 
have  been  fairly  successful  in  getting  these  things  appre- 
ciated. They  have  helped  to  foster  local  pride,,  and  to 
bring  about  some  changes  for  the  better  in  local  politics. 
Already  they  have  made  laboratory  studies  of  social  con- 
ditions, which  are  in  themselves  almost  their  sufficient 
raison  d  etre.  Still,  the  extravagant  claims  made  for  them 
in  certain  quarters  as  social  solvents,  bridges  between  the 
classes  and  the  masses,  picket-posts  of  a  new  social 
democracy,  etc.,  should  not  be  taken  too  seriously.  In  a 
word,  what  the  real  significance  of  the  settlements  may 
turn  out  to  be  when  the  glamour  that  at  present  surrounds 
them  has  vanished,  it  is  as  yet  quite  too  early  to  guess." 
ALVAN  F.  SANBORN  in  the  Independent,  Oct.  20,  1898. 

This  exposition  of  the  work  of  the  social  settlements 
is  wholly  explanatory,  as  exposition  should  be,  stating 
facts  only,  and  indulging  in  no  argument  on  the  basis 
of  these  facts.  In  like  manner  write  from  250  to  400 
words  on  each  of  three  of  the  following  subjects.  Be 
prepared  to  justify  your  order  of  treatment. 

i.  An  Hawaiian  custom.  2.  Education  in  Rome. 
3.  The  German  Reichstag.  4.  Base-ball.  5.  Getting  a 
bill  through  Congress.  6.  Chess.  7.  The  art  of  politi- 
cal lying.  8.  Grafting  trees.  9.  How  chemistry  makes 
life  easier.  10.  Making  crayon  pictures,  n.  Cleaning 
house.  12.  A  Shaker  colony.  13.  A  Quaker  meeting. 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  211 

75.   Argumentation In  argumentation  the  writer's 

purpose  is  to  convince  his  readers  or  hearers  of  the 
truth  of  a  proposition,  and  to  this  end  special  care  must 
be  taken  to  present  the  arguments  and  conclusions 
from  them  in  proper  order.  Statements  the  truth  of 
which  might  reasonably  be  a  matter  of  doubt  should 
not  be  made  without  giving  something  in  the  nature  of 
reasons  or  proofs  in  support  of  them.  In  argumenta- 
tive discourse  the  relation  of  cause  and  effect  will  gene- 
rally be  very  prominent  throughout.  Often,  however, 
the  proofs  of  the  statements  must  consist  of  illustra- 
tive facts,  showing  like  conditions  or  causes  that  make 
presumptive  like  results. . 

i.  The  remedy  for  oppression,  then,  is  to  bring  in  men 
who  cannot  be  oppressed.  2.  This  is  the  remedy  our 
fathers  sought;  we  shall  find  no  other.  3.  The  problem 
of  life  is  not  to  make  life  easier,  but  to  make  men  stronger, 
so  that  no  problem  shall  be  beyond  their  solution.  4.  It 
will  be  a  sad  day  for  the  Republic  when  life  is  easy  for 
ignorance,  indolence,  and  apathy.  5.  The  social  order 
of  the  present  we  cannot  change  much  if  we  would.  6. 
The  real  work  of  each  generation  is  to  mold  the  social 
orders  of  the  future.  7.  The  grown-up  men  and  women 
of  to-day  are,  in  a  sense,  past  saving.  8.  The  best  work 
of  the  republic  is  to  save  the  children.  9.  The  one 
great  duty  of  a  free  nation  is  education,  —  education, 
wise,  thorough,  universal ;  the  education  not  of  cram- 
ming, but  of  training ;  the  education  which  no  republic 
has  ever  given,  and  without  which  all  republics  must  be 
in  whole  or  in  part  failures.  10.  If  this  generation  should 
leave  as  its  legacy  to  the  next  the  real  education,  —  train- 
ing in  individual  power  and  skill,  breadth  of  outlook  on 
the  world  and  on  life,  —  the  problems  of  the  next  century 


212  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

would  take    care  of    themselves.      1 1 .  There  can  be    no 
industrial  problem  where  each  is  capable  of  solving  his 
own  individual  problem  for  himself. 
DAVID  STARR  JORDAN,  in  the  Independent,  Dec.  29,  1898. 

Here  sentence  i  contains  the  statement  of  the  thing 
for  which  the  writer  is  contending,  and  this  statement 
is  made  more  clear  and  definite  in  sentence  8.  Sen- 
tence 2  is  an  illustrative  fact  stated  as  a  presumptive 
reason  for  sentence  i.  Sentence  3  is  a  fact  stated 
as  a  cause  for  sentence  i.  Sentence  4  is  a  fact  stated  as 
a  cause  for  sentence  3.  Sentence  5  is  a  fact  stated 
as  a  cause  for  sentence  6,  which  is  itself  a  fact  stated  as 
a  cause  for  sentences  i  and  8.  Sentence  7  is  a  fact 
stated  as  a  cause  for  sentence  5  and  sentence  8.  Sen- 
tence 9  is  both  a  fuller  statement  of  sentence  8,  and 
also  a  fact  stated  as  a  cause  for  sentence  8.  Sentences 
10  and  1 1  are  facts  stated  as  causes  for  sentences  8  and 
i.  Note  throughout  this  paragraph  that,  while  some 
statements  are  made  which  must  rely  upon  the  reader's 
voluntary  assent,  those  that  might  fail  of  that  assent 
are  supported  by  others  which  bear  to  them  the  relation 
of  causes  or  of  reasons. 

i.  But,  however  correct  in  theory,  such  views,  it  will 
be  suspected,  are,  after  all,  remote  and  impracticable.  2. 
How,  especially,  can  we  hope  to  bring  our  intractable 
democracy  upon  so  high  a  ground  of  principle  ?  3.  I  can- 
not entirely  sympathize  with  such  impressions.  4.  His- 
tory clearly  indicates  the  fact  that  republics  are  more 
ductile  than  any  other  form  of  government,  and  more 
favorable  to  the  admission  of  high-toned  principles  and 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  213 

the  severer  maxims  cf  government.  5.  The  confederate 
republics  of  Crete,  and  the  daughter  republic  of  Sparta, 
were  no  other  than  studied  and  rigorous  systems  of  direct 
personal  discipline  upon  the  people,  in  which  wealth  and 
ease  were  in  nowise  sought,  but  sternly  rejected.  6.  And 
in  what  monarchy,  or  even  despotism,  of  the  world,  where 
but  in  plain  republican  Rome,  the  country  of  Cato  and 
Brutus,  is  a  censor  of  manners  and  morals  to  be  endured, 
going  forth  with  his  note-book,  and  for  any  breach  of 
parental  or  filial  duty  observed,  for  seduction  of  the  youth, 
for  dishonor  in  the  field,  for  a  drinking-bout,  or  even 
luxurious  manners,  inflicting  a  civil  degradation  upon  the 
highest  citizens  and  magistrates  ?  7.  The  beginnings,  too, 
of  our  own  history  are  of  the  same  temperament,  and  such 
as  perfectly  to  sympathize  with  the  highest  principles  of 
government  ?  8.  Indeed,  I  have  felt  it  to  be  in  the  high- 
est degree  auspicious,  that  the  ground  I  vindicate  before 
you  requires  no  revolution,  being  itself  the  true  American 
ground.  9.  May  we  not  also  discover  even  now,  in  the 
worst  forms  of  radicalism  and  political  depravation  among 
us,  a  secret  elemental  force,  a  law  of  republican  feeling, 
which,  if  appealed  to  on  high  and  rigid  principles,  would 
yield  a  true  response?  10.  We  fail  in  our  conservative 
attempts,  more  because  our  principles  are  too  low  than 
because  they  are  too  high.  1 1 .  A  course  of  administra- 
tion, based  on  the  pursuit  of  wealth  alone,  though  bad  in 
principle  anywhere,  is  especially  bad  in  a  republic.  12.  It 
is  more  congenial  to  the  splendors  and  stately  distinctions 
of  monarchy.  13.  It  concentrates  the  whole  attention  of 
the  nation  upon  wealth.  14.  It  requires  measures  to  be 
debated  only  as  they  bear  upon  wealth.  15.  It  produces 
thus  a  more  egregious  notion  of  its  dignity  continually, 
both  in  the  minds  of  those  who  have  it  and  of  those  who 
have  it  not,  and  thus  it  exasperates  every  bad  feeling  in  a 
republic,  till  it  retaliates  destruction  upon  it.  16.  But 
a  system  of  policy  based  on  the  high  and  impartial  prin- 
ciples of  philosophy,  one  that  respects  only  manly  bodies, 
high  talents,  great  sentiments  and  actions,  one  that  values 


214  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

excellence  of  person,  whether  found  in  the  palaces  of  the 
rich  or  the  huts  of  the  poor,  holding  all  gilded  idleness  and 
softness  in  the  contempt  they  deserve  —  such  a  system  is 
congenial  to  a  republic.  17.  It  would  have  attractions  to 
our  people.  18.  Its  philosophic  grounds,  too,  can  be 
vindicated  by  a  great  variety  of  bold  arguments,  and  the 
moral  absurdity  of  holding  wealth  in  higher  estimation 
than  personal  value  can  be  played  out  in  the  forms  of  wit 
and  satire,  so  as  to  raise  a  voice  of  acclamation,  and  over- 
whelm the  mercenary  system  with  utter  and  final  con- 
tempt. 

HORACE  BUSHNELL  :   True  Wealth  or  Weal  of  Nations. 

Here  the  speaker  is  arguing  that  "republics  are 
more  ductile,"  etc.,  as  in  sentence  4.  Sentences  I  and 
2  are  introductory,  stating  the  views  of  objectors  to  his 
opinion,  and  sentence  3  is  a  sentence  of  transition  to 
his  own  thought.  Sentences  5  and  6  give  specific 
instances  in  the  way  of  presumptive  proof  that  like 
results  should  follow  in  our  republic.  Sentences  /  and 

8  are  facts  stated  as  a  cause  for  sentence  4,  and  sentence 

9  is  a  fact  stated  in  the  form  of  a  rhetorical  question  as 
a  cause  for  sentence  4.     Sentence   10  is  a  fact  stated 
as  an  effect  from  sentence  4,  and  so  in  the  mincl  of  the 
reader  implying  the  truth  of  sentence  4.     Sentences  1 1 
and   12  are  facts  stated  as  effects  from  sentences   13, 
14,  and   15.      Sentence    16  is  a  fact  stated  as  a  cause 
for    sentence    4  ;  and    sentences    1 7    and    1 8  are  facts 
stated  as  causes  for  sentence  16,  and  therefore  also  as 
causes  for  sentence  4. 

Of  course  a  paragraph  is  not  sufficient  to  illustrate 
fully  the  course  of  an  elaborate  argument.  It  can  show 


THE  FORMS   OF  DISCOURSE.  21$ 

only  the  close  texture,  the  inwrought  dependence  of 
part  upon  part,  in  good  argumentative  discourse.  It 
should  be  kept  carefully  in  mind  that  such  argument  as 
is  contained  in  sentences  5  and  6  of  this  quotation  is 
not  of  the  most  convincing  sort.  Argument  from 
analogy  must  always  be  uncertain  because  of  the  im- 
probability of  having  in  both  cases  exactly  similar  condi- 
tions. It  is,  however,  the  sort  of  argument  most  readily 
furnished  by  history,  and  is  effective  in  making  a  con- 
clusion from  historical  facts  probable,  but  probable  only. 
76.  Exercises  in  Argumentation.  —  On  the  following 
outline  write  an  essay  of  500  words,  taking  care  to  leave 
no  doubtful  statements  without  some  sort  of  support  in 
the  way  of  causes,  reasons,  or  proofs. 

European  countries  should  maintain  smaller  armies. 

1.  (Cause.)     War    is  the    soldier's   business,  and   the 
soldier  is  inclined  to  look  upon  the  prospect  of  war  with 
favor.      (Reasons.) 

2.  (Effect.)     The  military  spirit   is  a  menace    to    the 
peaceful  interests  of  a  nation.     (Proofs.) 

3.  (Effect   and   Cause.)      A   standing   army   increases 
the  chance  of  war.     (Proofs.) 

4.  (Effect.)     A  state  of  war  is  a  reversion   to   barba- 
rism, impeding  the  progress  of  civilization.     (Proofs.) 

5.  (Cause  and  Effect.)  Armies  are  expensive,  and  entail 
great  indebtedness.    (Specific  instances.) 

6.  (Cause  and  Effect.)    Great  military  armaments  take 
the    strength  of    a   nation    from    productive    enterprises. 
(Reasons.) 

On  the  following  outline  write  an  essay  of  400  words, 
taking    care  to  have   the  essay  properly  connected    in 


2l6  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

thought,  and  properly  paragraphed  to  show  division  of 
thought.  Write  it  as  if  for  a  reader  very  strongly 
opposed  to  the  opinions  you  are  trying  to  enforce.  Give 
the  essay  a  title. 

The  Republican  form  of  government  is  best  fitted  for 
developing  manhood. 

Effect,  i.  An  interest  and  share  in  public  affairs 
enlarges  the  individual's  sense  of  responsibility,  and  with 
it  develops  his  better  qualities  of  head  and  heart. 

Cause.  2.  Such  an  interest  is  possible  only  in  a 
republic. 

Presumptive  proof.  3.  A  comparatively  fine  manhood 
has  been  seen  to  be  developed  in  republics.  [Specific 
instances.] 

Effect.  4.  The  sense  of  personal  freedom  is  in  itself 
ennobling. 

Cause.  5.  This  sense  of  freedom  is  not  possible  under 
a  monarchical  or  an  aristocratic  form  of  government. 

In  argumentative  discourse  it  is  usually  important  to 
present  the  arguments  in  the  order  of  their  importance. 
The  individual  force  of  each  argument  is  strengthened, 
if  it  is  in  each  case  a  more  convincing  argument  than 
the  one  immediately  preceding  it.  Re-arrange  the  mate- 
rial in  the  outline  below  so  as  to  secure  this  effect  of 
climax,  and  write  on  the  outline  as  so  arranged  an  essay 
of  500  words.  Give  the  essay  a  title. 

High  schools  should  give  more  particular  attention  to 
training  for  citizenship. 

1.  The  security  of  a  free  people  is  in  the  intelligence 
with  which  they  administer  their  affairs. 

2.  Education    may   train    the  student   away  from  the 
duties  of  citizenship. 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  21  / 

3.  It  is  for  its  own  good   that  the  state  pays  for  the 
education  of  its  citizens. 

4.  The  high  schools  seek  mainly  to  give  the  student 
culture. 

5.  Training  for  citizenship  does  not  consist  in  instruc- 
tion in  the  machinery  of  government. 

6.  Young   men    are   apt   to  accept   the  education  the 
state  gives  them  without  feeling  that  they  owe  it  anything 
in  return. 

7.  The   high   school  may  be  made  to  strengthen  the- 
sense  of  relationship  and  duty  to  the  state. 

8.  High  schools  that  do  not  do  this  fail  to  accomplish 
what  we  may  justly  expect  of  them.     Conclusion. 

Outline  four  of  the  following  subjects  in  such  fashion 
as  to  make  an  essay  upon  any  one  of  the  outlines  a  series 
of  arguments  of  increasing  force.  So  far  as  possible 
arrange  to  have  one  argument  develop  readily  and 
naturally  into  another.  Indicate  relations  of  cause  and 
effect,  or  other  relations  which  you  discern  between  the 
parts  of  the  outline.  Be  sure  to  have  your  outline  lead 
to  some  definite  conclusion. 

1.  United   States  senators  should  be  chosen  in  some 
other  way  than  by  the  legislatures  of  the  States. 

2.  The  increase  in  the  proportion  of  people  living  in 
cities  is  a  menace  to  our  American  civilization. 

3.  A  boy  should  not  choose  his  life-work  until  after  he 
has  finished  his  high-school  course. 

4.  In  the  estimation  of  future  ages  Lincoln  will  be  a 
greater  man  than  Washington. 

5.  Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  was  more  sinned  against  than 
sinning. 

6.  Evil  tendencies  in  young  people  are  best  overcome 
by  influencing  them  to  an  interest  in  better  things. 


2l8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

7.  The    novel   is   an   increasingly    important    literary 
vehicle  for  the  artistic  expression  of  all  sorts  of  truths  and 
theories. 

8.  A  curfew  law  is  everywhere  desirable. 

9.  Examinations  are  not  a  satisfactory  test  of  a  stu- 
dent's scholarship. 

10.  Some  manual  training  should  be  included  in  the 
teaching  of  a  high-school  course. 

1 1 .  The  right  to  vote  should  not  be  granted  to  those 
who  cannot  read. 

12.  Country  life  is  the  best  for  a  growing  boy. 

13.  No  man  should  be  appointed  to  office  because  of 
his  politics. 

14.  High-school    pupils    should    keep    themselves    in- 
formed upon  topics  of  current  interest. 

15.  It   is  wrong  to  hazard  money  upon  any  game  of 
chance. 

Upon  two  of  the  outlines  you  have  made  write  essays 
of  350  words  or  more  each.  Be  prepared  to  justify  the 
proportionate  amount  of  space  given  to  each  argument 
presented.  Criticise  each  production  carefully  with  re- 
gard (i)  to  logical  connection  of  thought,  (2)  to  content 
of  the  sentences  and  proper  subordination  of  clauses, 
and  (3)  to  the  accurate  and  fitting  use  of  words. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  What  are  the  distinguishing  characteristics   of  the 
different  literary  forms  of  which  this  chapter  treats  ? 

2.  Bring  to  the  class  examples  of  each  of  these  distinc- 
tive forms,  and  be  prepared  to  say  whether  each  is,  or  is 
not,  a  good  example  of  its  kind,  and  why.- 

3.  Which  of  these  various  forms  of  discourse  belong 
more  particularly  to  the  literature  of  feeling,  and  which  to 
the  literature  of  thought,  and  why  ?     In  which  should  you 
expect  to  find  the  greater  number  of  Anglo-Saxon  words  ? 


THE  FORMS  OF  DISCOURSE.  219 

Of  classical  words  ?    Why  ?    Is  this  true  in  the  case  of  the 
examples  you  have  found  for  exercise  2  ? 

4.  Tell,  in  the  case  of  each  of  the  distinct  forms  of  dis- 
course, which  of  the  following  literary  laws  is  the  most  im- 
portant and  why :    Selection  (the  proper  choice  of  details 
to  be  treated),  Unity,  Coherence,  Proportion,  Climax. 

5.  Bring  to  class  examples  of  each  of  these  forms,  and 
comment  upon  them  with  reference  to  each  of  these  liter- 
ary laws. 

6.  Should  you  expect  to  make  a  description  vivid  by 
giving  a  mass  of  details,  or  by  presenting  a  few  important 
details  of  like  or  harmonious  significance  ?     Why  ? 

7.  Find  in  a  newspaper  or   in  a  magazine  what  you 
think  is  a  poor  example  of  one  of  the  forms  of  discourse, 
and  be  prepared  to  explain  why  you  think  it  is  poor. 

8.  Bring  to  the  class  an  example  of  narration  that  has 
distinct  rapidity  of  movement,  and  another  that  has  not. 
Be  prepared  to  show  whether  it  is  more  characterization, 
or  more  explanation,  that  delays  the  second.     In  which 
do  you  find  the  shorter  sentences  ? 

9.  Write  five  topic  sentences  each  for  five  of  the  fol- 
lowing subjects,  arrange  them  in  proper  order,  give  the 
whole  a  title,  and  say  which  of   the  forms  of  discourse 
the  whole   composition   would   be    an    example   of  when 
written  in  full. 

1.  The  qualities  that  go  to  make  a  good  musician.  [verse? 

2.  Why  have  many  nations  made  their  first  literary  efforts  in 

3.  The  character  of  Ida  in  the  Princess. 

4.  What  I  saw  on  my  trip^up  the  river. 

t.  The  old  homestead. 

.  Bacon  and  Shakespeare. 

7.  The  decline  of  Spain. 

8.  The  Spanish  Armada. 

9.  Longfellow's  "  Psalm  of  Life." 

10.  Grandfather's  clock. 

11.  Down  by  the  creek. 

12.  At  home  in  a  moving- wagon. 

13.  A  soldier's  life. 

14.  A  burial  of  dead  in  battle. 

15.  The  midnight  sun. 


22O  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

10.  In  which  of  the  several  forms  of  discourse  should 
you  expect  to  find  paragraphs  containing  the  more  defi- 
nite topic  sentences  ?    Why  ?    In  which  would  paragraphs 
without  topic   sentences  be  the   more  frequent  ?     Why  ? 
In  which  should  you  expect  to  find  the  shorter,  more  di- 
rect and  simple  sentences  ?     Why  ?     In  which  the  longer 
and  more  involved  sentences  ?     Why  ? 

11.  What   should  you   say  of   a  description   requiring 
three  minutes  in  the  reading  ? 

12.  Write   a  composition   on   one   of  the   subjects  for 
which  you  wrote  topic  sentences  under  Exercise  9. 

13.  Do  you  think  a  narrative   recounting  a   series  of 
incidents  having  merely  the  relation  of  sequence  in  time, 
or  one  giving  incidents  which  develop  one  from  the  other 
with  the  relation  of  cause  and  effect,  would  be  the  more 
interesting  to  the  reader  ?     Why  ? 

14.  In  argumentation  should  you  in  general  think  it 
best  to  answer  possible  objections  of  your  reader  before 
proceeding  to  your  own  argument  or  not  ?     Why  ? 

15.  Write  an  exposition  of  something  in  which  you  are 
interested,  and  which  you  understand. 

1 6.  Give    an    account   of    some    recent    happening    in 
school. 


PART  III. 

STYLE. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

DICTION  :      SELECTION    OF    WORDS     FOR  CLEARNESS, 
FORCE,    AND    ELEGANCE. 

77.  Diction.  —  By  diction  is  to  be  understood  the 
choice,  use,  and  arrangement  of  words  and  combinations 
of  words  in  phrases  or  other  expressions.  The  pupil 
who  takes  up  the  reading  of  the  Orations  of  Cicero  a*fter 
having  read  Caesar's  Commentaries  finds  at  first  that 
the  new  study  is  much  more  difficult  than  the  old. 
There  are  new  words  and  new  combinations  of  words  ; 
the  sentence  order  is  different ;  and  many  words  are 
used  in  other  than  the  sense  which  they  have  in  Caesar. 
In  brief,  there  is  a  change  of  diction,  and  the  new  dic- 
tion is  fundamentally  characteristic  of  Cicero's  style. 
No  two  writers  use  the  same  vocabulary,  or  use  even 
the  words  that  they  employ  in  common  with  the  same 
frequency  or  in  the  same  way.  When  we  speak  of  a 
writer's  diction,  then,  we  mean  the  way  in  which  he 
uses  words. 

221 


222  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

78.  Number  of  Words.  —  Remembering  that  the  ob- 
ject of  all  writing  is  to  bring  understanding  or  convic- 
tion to  our  readers,  we  must  realize  at  once  that  the 
more  we  dilute  our  meaning  the  less  effective  it  will  be 
in  persuading  or  informing  those  for  whom  we  write. 
We  must  say  all  that  we  have  to  say,  and  we  must  say 
it  with  sufficient  fullness  for  clear  understanding  ;  but 
we  must  say  no  more  than  that,  and  so  much  we  must 
say  in  as  few  words  as  possible.  Among  the  faults  of 
diction  that  we  must  guard  against,  if  we  wish  what  we 
write  to  have  force,  are  verbosity,  circumlocution,  redun- 
dancy, and  tautology. 

Verbosity  is  the  general  fault  of  too  many  words,  the 
use  of  such  expressions  as  "in  something  of  a  hurry," 
for  "hastily,"  or  "in  its  location  the  village  had  the 
fortune  to  be  slightly  higher  than  the  surrounding 
country,"  for  "the  village  was  on  a  slight  elevation." 
Circumlocution  is  the  employment  of  involved  and 
"  round-about  "  expressions,  a  fault  differing  but  little 
from  verbosity,  and  like  it  to  be  corrected  only  by  a 
complete  re-writing.  Redundancy  is  the  employment  of 
words  that  are  not  needed,  and  may  usually  be  cor- 
rected simply  by  cutting  such  words  out.  Tautology, 
the  repetition  of  expressions  or  ideas,  has  been  spoken 
of  in  an  earlier  chapter,  but  it  is  a  fault  against  which 
we  shall  have  to  be  watchful  always,  no  amount  of 
training  or  practice  serving  to  make  us  secure  against  it. 
Force  is  the  quality  of  style  by  virtue  of  which  a  com- 
position impresses  itself  upon  the  reader.  Wordiness 


DICTION, 


223 


of  any  sort,  whether  coming  from  verbosity,  circumlocu- 
tion, redundancy,  or  tautology,  detracts  from  the  force 
of  our  writing.  In  the  great  mass  of  writing  that  is 
pouring  from  the  press  ours  will  receive  but  scant 
attention  if  it  lacks  force. 

Below  there  are  given  in  the  first  column  examples  of 
each  of  the  faults  of  wordiness.  Study  them  carefully 
in  connection  with  the  better  form  in  the  second  column. 
Do  not  be  too  sure  that  you  would  not  yourself  make 
such  simple  mistakes  as  some  of  these.  With  an  excep- 
tion or  two  they  have  been  taken  from  students'  papers, 
and  the  supposition  is  that  in  each  case  the  student  was 
trying  to  write  his  best. 


79.   Verbosity  and   Circumlocution. 


Mrs.  Tongueloose  had 
bent  her  head  and  seemed 
quite  absorbed  in  her  sew- 
ing, which  was  something 
unusual  for  her. 

The  whole  country  here 
is  covered  with  a  dense 
growth  of  palmettos  from 
two  to  six  feet  tall,  and  so 
thick  that  one  can  scarce- 
ly walk  through  them, 
their  many-pointed  leaves 
stopping  one  almost  as 
effectively  as  barbed-wire. 

A  man  killed  a  dog  be- 
longing to  another  man. 
The  son  of  the  man  whose 


Mrs.  Tongueloose,  her 
head  bent,  seemed  ab- 
sorbed in  her  sewing, 
something  unusual. 

The  whole  country  here 
is  covered  with  a  demise 
growth  of  palmettos,  from 
two  to  six  feet  tall,  which 
are  covered  with  many- 
pointed  leaves  that  pre- 
vent walking  through 
them  almost  as  effectually 
as  barbed-wire. 

A  man  who  had  been 
whipped  by  the  son  of  a 
neighbor  whose  dog  he 


224 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


dog  was  killed  proceeded 
to  whip  the  man  who  killed 
the  dog  of  the  man  he  was 
the  son  of.  The  man  who 
was  the  son  of  the  man 
whose  dog  was  killed,  was 
arrested  on  complaint  of 
the  man  who  was  assaulted 
by  the  son  of  the  man 
whose  dog  the  son  of  the 
man  who  was  assaulted 
had  killed. 

As  the  moon  had  risen 
quite  a  distance  in  the 
heavens,  it  cast  a  long, 
silvery  reflection  upon  the 
whole  width  of  the  stream. 

80.  Redundancy. 

Although  a  very  small 
girl,  Maggie  had  a  brain 
equal  in  capacity  and 
strength  to  that  of  a  much 
older  one. 

Silently  and  mutely  she 
distributed  the  work. 

We  moved  along  swift- 
ly over  the  hummocks 
which  occasionally  be- 
came so  rough  as  to  neces- 
sitate our  getting  off  and 
carefully  picking  our  way 
over  them. 

81.  Tautology. 

I  have  in  mind  a  coun- 
try church,  some  six  or 
seven  miles  from  where  I 


had  killed,  had  his  assail- 
ant arrested. 


As  the  moon  was  high 
in  the  heavens,  it  cast  a 
long,  silvery  reflection  up- 
on the  whole  width  of  the 
stream. 


Although  a  very  small 
girl,  Maggie  had  a  brain 
equal  to  that  of  one  much 
older. 

Silently  she  distributed 
the  work. 

We  moved  along  swiftly 
over  the  hummocks  which 
were  occasionally  so  rough 
that  we  were  compelled  to 
get  off  and  pick  our  way. 


I  have  in  mind  a  coun- 
try church  some  six  or 
seven  miles  from  where  I 


DICTION. 


225 


lived  last  year.  It  was 
built  by  a  community  of 
wealthy  farmers  who  be- 
lieved that  country  people 
should  have  as  good  a 
church  building  as  any 
town.  The  building  stands 
on  a  hill  some  little  higher 
than  the  surrounding 
country,  and  so  can  be 
seen  some  distance  away 
in  almost  every  direction. 
As  you  approach  it  you 
know,  instantly  that  it  is 
quite  a  costly  building.  It 
will  hold  between  two  and 
three  hundred  people,  is 
nicely  carpeted,  and  is 
furnished  with  new  seats, 
pulpit,  chairs,  and  organ. 
The  windows  are  of  fancy 
colored  glass,  nearly  all  of 
them  put  there  in  remem- 
brance of  some  faithful 
member  of  the  church  who 
is  not  there  to  behold  the 
beauty  of  the  building. 
There  are  modern  gaso- 
line lamps,  and  the  build- 
ing is  heated  by  hot-air 
furnaces. 


lived  last  year.  It  was 
built  by  a  community  of 
wealthy  farmers,  who  be- 
lieved that  country  people 
should  have  as  good  a 
house  of  worship  as  any 
town.  The  building  stands 
somewhat  higher  than  the 
surrounding  country, 
and  so  can  be  seen  at  a 
great  distance  in  almost 
every  direction.  As  you 
approach  it  you  perceive 
at  once  that  it  is  a  well- 
built  structure.  It  will 
hold  between  two  and 
three  hundred  people,  is 
nicely  carpeted,  and  is 
furnished  with  new  seats, 
pulpit,  chairs,  and  organ. 
The  windows  a're  of  fancy 
colored  glass,  nearly  all  of 
them  put  there  in  remem- 
brance of  some  faithful 
member  of  the  church 
who  can  not  now  behold 
the  beauty  of  the  place. 
It  is  lighted  by  the  mod- 
ern gasoline  lamps  and 
heated  by  hot-air  furnaces. 


82.  Exercise Criticise  each  of  the  following  para- 
graphs with  especial  regard  to  faults  of  wordiness,  and 
re-write  it  in  better  form. 

i.    Geronimo,  the  Apache  leader,  has  become  a  raving 
maniac  as  a  result  of  his  being  held  in  captivity,  according 


226  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

to  a  dispatch  from  Vinita,  Ind.  T.  With  other  Apache 
braves  he  has  been  a  prisoner  at  Fort  Sill,  Oklahoma,  for 
ten  of  the  fourteen  years  since  their  capture  by  the  army. 
It  is  said  that  constant  fretting  and  a  growing  despon- 
dency over  his  captivity  have  wrecked  Geronimo's  mind. 

2.  During   the   reign    of  George   I.,  England  became 
heavily  encumbered  with  debt.     In   order  to  relieve  this 
burden  a  number  of  prominent  and  influential  men  formed 
an   organization    known    as   the  "  South   Sea  Company." 
Their  idea  was  to  pay  off  the  national  debt  solely  from 
the  profits  of  the  slave  trade  which  they  were  to  carry  on 
between  Africa  and  Brazil. 

3.  Cortez   belonged    to  a  noble  family   with   a   small 
fortune,  and   at  the  age  of  fourteen  he  was  sent  to  the 
University  of   Salamanca  to  study  for  the  bar ;  but  study 
was  distasteful  to  him  and  he  returned  home,  thinking  of 
taking  up  a  life  of  adventure.      The  plans  of  adventure 
formed    in    youth    were    carried    out.      Hearing   that   in 
Mexico  a  settlement  had  not  been  effected,  he  set  sail  for 
this  country  and  landed  on   the  coast.     Advancing  along 
the  coast,  sometimes  taking    measures    to  conciliate   the 
natives  and  sometimes    spreading  terror  by  his  arms,  he 
took  possession  of  the  town  of  Tabasco. 

4.  What  is  the  actual  cost  of  the  national  conventions 
of  one  of  the  great   political   parties  ?     This  question  is 
more  easily   asked    than   answered,    as   I   have  found  in 
endeavoring  to  secure  an   accurate  answer  to  it.     Party 
leaders,  convention  managers,  convention  officials,  either 
do  not  know  or  will  not  tell  the  details  of  the  expenditures 
on  this   account.     They    seem  to  be  part  of  a  body  of 
secrets   which  one    national    committee    hands    down    to 
another,  and  which  all  national  committees  endeavor  to 
keep   from    the    public.     The    national    conventions    are 
largely  under  the  management  of  the  national  committees. 
National  committees  select  the  time  and  the  place,  make 
the  arrangements  with  the  cities  which  entertain  the  con- 
vention, manage  everything  but  the  actual   proceedings, 

wind  up  the  business  affairs  afterwards, 


DICTION.  227 

83.  Precision.  —  In  a  general  way  we  think  of  synonyms 
as  words  which  have  the  same  meaning,  but  in  actual  fact 
there  are  in  the  language  only  a  few  pairs  of  words  which 
are  exact  equivalents.  It  is  true  that  often  any  one  of 
a  number  of  words  will  do  for  our  purpose,  but  only  one 
of  the  words  that  we  may  use  will  express  exactly  the 
thought  we  have  in  mind.  If  in  the  enthusiasm  of  com- 
position we  are  careless  and  write  something  that  is  not 
just  what  we  wished  to  say,  the  fact  that  we  have,  per- 
haps, given  our  readers  our  own  warmth  of  feeling  will 
not  atone  for  our  inaccuracy.  A  writer  of  whose  con- 
scientious sureness  we  are  confident  gives  us  an  added 
pleasure  through  that  confidence,  since  it  permits  us  to 
relax  our  vigilance  and  yield  to  the  mere  enjoyment  of 
the  page.  On  the  other  hand,  when  in  the  work  of  a 
careless  writer  we  come  upon  a  word  which,  as  we  feel, 
is  not  used  in  its  exact  signification,  we  become  watch- 
fully critical  at  once,  and  in  this  mood  we  do  not  have 
the  same  pleasure  in  our  author. 

We  can  be  precise  in  our  use  of  words  only  through 
the  most  painstaking  care.  Even  then,  with  all  the  help 
that  we  may  get  from  dictionaries  and  books  of  refer- 
ence, we  shall  not  be  able  to  use  the  right  word  in  the 
right  place  if  we  have  not  come  to  a  genuine  familiarity 
with  the  word  in  the  course  of  our  general  reading.  We 
must  make  ourselves  observant,  taking  mental  note  of 
the  shades  of  meaning  which  words  have  as  they  are 
used  by  those  who  are  masters  of  them.  By  doing  this 
we  may  hope  to  use  them  easily  and  with  precision. 


228  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

84.  The  Choice  of  Words.  —  We  have  observed  before 
that  the  effect  a  word  has  upon  us  is  dependent  upon 
something  in  addition  to  its  absolute  meaning.  Words- 
worth contended  that  the  diction  of  poetry  was  the  same 
as  the  diction  of  prose  ;,  but  he  was  practically  alone  in 
the  opinion,  and  one  need  read  but  little  of  his  verse  to 
realize  how  fatal  to  much  of  it  his  theory  was.  A  recent 
critic  of  Rudyard  Kipling  finds  warrant  for  his  criticism 
in  the  character  of  the  poet's  diction.  Great  poetry,  as  he 
insists,  cannot  be  written  in  a  vocabulary  the  chief  asso- 
ciations of  which  are  with  the  common  and  the  vulgar. 
Perhaps  we  do  not  need  to  be  so  careful  in  our  choice 
of  words  for  prose  as  for  verse,  but  the  same  principle 
holds  in  the  one  as  in  the  other.  As  we  have  seen,  we 
must  not  use  too  many  words  ;  we  must  use  them  with 
precision  ;  and,  further  —  we  must  use  words  that  are  in 
keeping,  that  is,  those  that  have  the  tone  of  the  writing 
we  have  in  hand.  We  must  consider,  then,  whether  we 
should  use  short  or  long  words,  scholarly  or  colloquial 
words,  words  that  are  emotionally  suggestive,  or  words 
that  we  think  of  as  having  been  employed  largely  in 
the  literature  of  thought.  In  the  selection  that  follows 
note  with  what  care  the  words  have  been  chosen,  a  care 
that  conceals  itself,  so  simply  and  naturally  do  the  sen- 
tences follow  one  another.  It  is  the  expression  of  a 
general  truth,  a  truth  of  universal  significance  ;  but 
the  writer  wishes  to  make  it  personal  and  individual, 
and  so  he  employs  words  that  are  suggestive  of  things 
that  we  have  all  felt  or  imagined.  "Think  and  love," 


DICTION.  229 

"  strength  and  patience,"  "humble  and  serviceable,"  are 
expressions  that  in  themselves  have  significance  for  our 
deepest  feeling.  The  personification  in  "  whose  whim  " 
makes  the  abstract  generalization  of  the  word  "oppor- 
tunity "  more  personal,  and  so  do  practically  all  the 
remaining  words  of  the  sentence  that  are  not  mere 
words  of  articulation.  "  Habited  "  and  "  plainest  garb  " 
are  used  here  rather  than  clothed  and  simplest  dress  as 
being  less  conventional  and  so  suggesting  cloistered 
seclusion  to  the  imagination  more  effectively.  Through- 
out the  paragraph  the  words  are  such  as  will  in  them- 
selves have  emotional  value  through  what  they  suggest 
of  experience  or  of  things  imagined; 

Whatever  can  help  me  to  think  and  love,  whatever  can 
give  me  strength  and  patience,  whatever  can  make  me 
humble  and  serviceable,  though  it  be  a  trifle  light  as  air, 
is  opportunity,  whose  whim  it  is  to  hide  in  unconsiderable 
things,  in  chance  acquaintance  and 'casual  speech,  in  the 
falling  of  an  apple,  in  floating  weeds,  or  the  accidental 
explosion  in  a  chemist's  mortar.  Wisdom  is  habited  in 
plainest  garb,  and  she  walks  modestly,  unheeded  of  the 
gaping  and  wondering  crowd.  She  rules  over  the  king- 
dom of  little  things,  in  which  the  lowly  minded  hold  the 
places  of  privilege.  Her  secrets  are  revealed  to  the  care- 
ful, the  patient,  and  the  humble.  They  may  be  learned 
from  the  ant  or  the  flower  that  blooms  in  some  hidden 
spot  or  from  the  lips  of  husbandmen  and  housewifes. 
He  is  wise  who  finds  a  teacher  in  every  man,  an  occasion 
to  improve  in  every  happening,  for  whom  nothing  is  use- 
less or  vain.  If  one  whom  he  has  trusted  play  false,  he 
lays  it  to  the  account  of  his  own  heedlessness  and  resolves 
to  become  more  observant.  If  men  scorn  him,  he  is 
thankful  that  he  need  not  scorn  himself.  If  they  pass 


230  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

him  by,  it  is  enough  for  him  that  truth  and  love  still  re- 
main. If  he  is  thrown  with  one  who  bears  himself  with 
ease  and  grace,  or  talks  correctly  in  pleasantly  modulated 
tones,  or  utters  what  can  spring  only  from  a  sincere  and 
generous  mind  —  there  is  opportunity.  If  he  chance  to 
find  himself  in  the  company  of  the  rude,  their  vulgarity 
gives  him  a  higher  estimate  of  the  worth  of  breeding  and 
behavior.  The  happiness  and  good  fortune  of  his  fellows 
add  to  his  own.  J.  L.  SPALDING  :  Opportunity. 

The  ability  to  make  choice  of  words  that  shall  be  in 
harmony  with  the  general  tone  of  what  we  are  writing, 
sureness  of  judgment  in  deciding  when  a  long  word  is 
cumbrous  or  a  short  one  trivial  and  commonplace,  can 
come  only  through  the  insensible  training  that  \ve  de- 
rive from  intimate  acquaintance  with  a  wide  range  of 
literature  of  the  finer  sort.  Taste,  which  is  but  a  ready 
knowledge  of  what  is  fitting,  is  a  thing  that  cannot  be 
taught  definitely.  The  study  of  literature  develops 
appreciation  of  what  is  beautiful  and  a  corresponding 
dislike  for  the  ugly  and  inharmonious.  When  the 
aesthetic  sense  has  become  somewhat  refined  and  sure 
we  have  in  a  degree  acquired  taste,  and  may  in  that 
degree  trust  our  literary  judgment.  Until  our  own 
literary  likings  have  become  fairly  conformable  to  the 
established  judgment  of  the  world  we  shall  do  well  to 
distrust  them,  not  disowning  them,  but  accepting  the 
opinions  of  those  who  are  more  competent,  and  attempt- 
ing to  bring  ourselves  to  a  like  certainty  of  insight. 
The  necessity  of  cultivating  our  tastes  is  quite  as  great 
in  the,  matter  of  making  proper  choice  of  words  as  in 


DICTION.  231 

the  larger  questions  of  our  likings  for  the  novel  or  the 
poem  or  the  drama.  A  great  part  of  the  enjoyment  that 
we  find  in  our  reading  should  come  from  our  sense  of 
the  artistic  excellence  of  the  story  or  the  poem  or  the 
essay,  and  we  shall  write  with  the  most  genuine  pleas- 
ure when  we  are  conscious  of  making  a  like  appeal  to 
the  aesthetic  sense  in  others.  We  shall  not  be  able  to 
do  this,  and  we  shall  not  know  wherein  we  fail,  until 
we  have  acquired  a  cultivated  taste. 

85.  Style  as  Affected  by  Choice  of  Words.  —  We  may 
now  properly  turn  to  consideration  of  some  writings  of 
different  sorts  with  a  view  to  studying  the  authors'  choice 
of  words  and  of  the  different  characteristics  of  style 
which  have  in  part  resulted  from  the  choice  in  each 
case.  A  quality  of  first  importance  in  all  writing  is  clear- 
ness. We  must  make  it  our  first  care  to  be  understood. 
Other  qualities  are  important,  but  clearness  is  essen- 
tial, and  without  it  others  cannot  be  effective.  As  one 
of  the  intellectual  qualities  of  style,  it  is  as  necessary  in 
a  scientific  treatise  as  in  a  literary  essay,  and  is,  there- 
fore, not  a  distinct  literary  quality  in  itself.  The  other 
intellectual  qualities  of  style,  unity  and  coherence,  are 
not  directly  affected  by  choice  of  words  and  so  need 
not  be  considered  here.  On  the  other  hand,  the  emo- 
tional qualities  of  style  are  in  a  measure  dependent 
upon  the  character  of  the  words  employed.  A  compo- 
sition which  is  to  have  literary  character  must  have,  in 
addition  to  unity  and  coherence  and  clearness,  various 
emotional  qualities  of  style  which  we  may  consider 


232  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

under  the  general  heads  of  force  and  elegance.  If  there 
does  not  appear  in  it  some  sort  of  mental  energy  which 
is  in  part  communicated  to  the  reader,  and  if  there  is 
not  in  it  some  appeal  to  the  aesthetic  sense,  it  is  not 
literature.  For  this  reason  legal  documents,  strictly 
scientific  treatises, — books  on  mathematical  subjects, 
and  other  writings  of  like  sort,  are  not  literature  in 
the  more  exact  sense.  Under  the  general  term  force 
we  may  group  such  special  forms  of  this  quality  as 
vehemence,  passion,  dignity  and  animation,  and  under 
elegance  we  may  include  propriety,  harmony,  beauty,  and 
other  qualities  for  which  it  would  be  difficult  to  find 
exact  terms.  That  we  may  come  to  a  more  definite  un- 
derstanding of  what  these  qualities  are,  and  of  the  way 
in  which  -they  are  in  part  results  of  our  choice  of 
words,  let  us  consider  some  writings  in  which  they  are 
present  in  greater  or  less  degree.  Taking  into  considera- 
tion the  words  printed  in  italics  in  each  of  the  following 
selections  from  Burke  and  Macaulay,  determine  which 
author  has  chosen  his  words  the  better  for  the  purpose 
of  securing  clearness,  and  state  briefly  why  each  word 
is  or  is  not  well  chosen  for  that  purpose. 

But  the  population  of  this  country,  the  great  and  grow- 
ing population,  though  a  very  important  consideration, 
will  lose  much  of  its  weight,  if  not  combined  with  other 
circumstances.  The  commerce  of  your  colonies  is  out  of 
all  proportion  beyond  the  numbers  of  the  people.  This 
ground  of  their  commerce,  indeed,  has  been  trod  some 
days  ago,  and  with  great  ability,  by  a  distinguished  per- 
son, at  your  bar.  This  gentleman,  after  thirty-five  years, 


DICTION.  233 

-  it  is  so  long  since  he  first  appeared  at  the  same  place 
to  plead  for  the  commerce  of  Great  Britain  —  has  come 
again  before  you  to  plead  the  same  cause,  without  any 
other  effect  of  time  than  that  to  the  fire  of  imagination  and 
the  extent  of  erudition,  which  even  then  marked  him  as 
one  of  the  first  literary  characters  of  his  age,  he  has 
added  a  consummate  knowledge  in  the  commercial  interest 
of  his  country^  formed  by  a  long  course  of  enlightened  and 
discriminating  experience. 
EDMUND  BURKE  :  Speech  on  Conciliation  with  America. 

The  sergeants  made  proclamation.  Hastings  ad- 
vanced to  the  bar,  and  bent  his  knee.  The  culprit  was 
indeed  not  unworthy  of  that  great  presence.  He  had  ruled 
an  extensive  and  a  populous  country,  had  made  laws  and 
treaties,  had  sent  forth  armies,  had  set  up  and  pulled 
down  princes.  And  in  his  high  place  he  had  so  borne 
himself  that  all  had ^mm/ him,  that  most  had  loved  him, 
and  that  hatred  itself  could  deny  him  no  title  to  glory, 
except  virtue.  He  locked  like  a  great  man  and  not  like 
a  bad  man.  A  person  small  and  emaciated,  yet  deriving 
dignity  from  a  carriage  which,  while  it  indicated  deference 
to  the  court,  indicated  also  habitual  self-possession  and 
self -respect,  a  high  and  intellectual  forehead,  a  brow  peji- 
sive,  but  not  gloomy,  a  mouth  of  inflexible  decision,  a  face 
pale  and  worn,  but  serene,  on  which  was  written,  as  legibly 
as  under  the  picture  in  the  council-chamber  at  Calcutta, 
Mens  aqua  in  arduis  ;  such  was  the  aspect  with  which  the 
great  pro-consul  presented  himself  to  his  judges, 

T.  B.  MACAULAY  :    Warren  Hastings. 

Both  Burke  and  Macaulay  were  orators.  The  former 
was  in  general  unsuccessful  in  the  effort  to  carry  his 
hearers  with  him,  while  the  latter  was  always  heard 
with  pleasure.  Can  you  account  for  this  in  part  from, 
the  character  of  these  two  selections  ? 


234  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

86.  Force  as  a  Quality  of  Diction.  —  The  faults  of 
diction  which  were  considered  in  the  beginning  of  this 
chapter  —  tautology,  redundancy,  circumlocution,  and 
verbosity  —  are  faults  of  weakness,  that  is,  they  are  faults 
that  lessen  the  force  —  the  strength  or  energy,  as  it  is 
variously  called —  of  a  composition.  The  discussion  of 
these  matters  has  made  it  clear  that  condensation  when 
it  is  not  carried  so  far  as  to  lessen  clearness  contributes 
largely  to  force.  Further,  if  we  make  a  study  of  the 
work  of  an  author  whose  style  is  remarkable  for  its  force, 
we  shall  observe  that  this  quality  comes  in  part  from  the 
employment  of  words  which  have  force  in  themselves. 
Words  differ  in  degree  of  significance  as  well  as  in  other 
ways,  and  a  composition  which  is  written  in  words  that 
are  largely  unimportant  will  seem  insignificant  as  a  whole. 

An  examination  of  the  selections  from  Irving  and 
Kipling  which  follow  may  enable  us  to  understand  more 
clearly  some  of  the  elements  that  contribute  to  force  in 
style.  The  lack  of  this  quality  in  Irving  is  always 
noticeable,  and  to  the  nerveless  character  of  his  style  it 
is  in  great  measure  due  that,  while  he  is  studied  in  the 
schools  because  of  his  importance  in  our  early  literature, 
he  is  no  longer  read. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  those  early  writers  who 
treated  of  the  discovery  and  settlement  of  America  have 
not  given  us  more  particular  and  candid  accounts  of  the 
remarkable  characters  that  flourished  in  savage  life.  The 
scanty  anecdotes  which  have  reached  us  are  full  of  peculi- 
arity and  interest ;  they  furnish  us  with  nearer  glimpses 
of  human  nature,  and  show  what  man  is  in  a  compara- 


DICTION.  235 

ively  primitive  state,  and  what  he  owes  to  civilization. 
There  is  something  of  the  charm  of  discovery  in  lighting 
upon  these  wild  and  unexplored  tracts  of  human  nature  ; 
in  witnessing,  as  it  were,  the  native  growth  cf  moral 
sentiment ;  and  perceiving  those  generous  and  romantic 
qualities  which  have  been  artificially  cultivated  by  society, 
vegetating  in  spontaneous  hardihood  and  rude  magnifi- 
cence. WASHINGTON  IRVING  :  The  Sketch  Book. 

In  this  there  are  two  things  to  be  observed.  In  the 
first  place,  to  the  important  words  the  voice  gives 
little  stress  beyond  that  required  by  their  meaning 
merely.  Force  is  an  emotional  quality  of  style,  as  has 
been  said,  and  Irving  does  not  make  choice  of  words 
such  as  call  for  emotional  stress.  And  again,  the  words 
printed  in  italics  are  either  lacking  in  intensity,  as 
"regretted,"  or  are  too  general  and  abstract,  as 
"peculiarity"  and  "interest,"  to  contribute  to  the 
force  of  the  paragraph.  The  last  defect  is  funda- 
mental in  Irving' s  writing  as  a  whole.  In  this 
paragraph  the  tone  is  properly  that  of  thoughtful  con- 
sideration of  the  distinctive  traits  of  the  Indian,  but  the 
grounds  for  the  regret  expressed  might  well  have  been 
made  more  concretely  and  specifically  definite  and  vivid. 
They  would  then  have  appealed  to  the  reader  with  more 
directness  and  force. 

Dick  had  instinctively  sought  running  water  for  a  com- 
fort to  his  mood  of  mind.  He  was  leaning  over  the 
embankment  wall,  watching  the  rush  (A  the  Thames  through 
the  arches  of  Westminster  Bridge.  He  began  by  thinking 
of  Torpenhow's  advice,  but,  as  of  custom,  lost  himself  in 


236  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

the  study  of  the  faces  flocking  by.  Some  had  death  written 
on  their  features,  and  Dick  marvelled  that  they  could 
laugh.  Others,  clumsy  and  coarse-built  for  the  most  part, 
were  alight  with  love  ;  others  were  merely  drawn  and  lined 
with  work ;  but  there  was  something,  Dick  knew,  to  be 
made  out  of  them  all.  The  poor  at  least  should  suffer 
that  he  might  learn,  and  the  rich  should  pay  for  the  output 
of  his  learning.  Thus  his  credit  in  the  world  and  his  cash 
balance  at  the  bank  would  be  increased.  So  much  the 
better  for  him.  He  had  suffered.  Now  he  would  take 
toll  of  the  ills  of  others. 

RUDYARD  KIPLING  :   The  Light  that  Failed. 

Here  we  feel  at  once  a  more  virile  personality.  The 
words  printed  in  italics  are  words  that  for  one  reason  or 
another  are  indicative  of  emotional  stress ;  they  cannot 
be  passed  over  lightly.  "  Running  water  "  has  defi- 
nite association  in  our  minds  with  things  that  we  have 
experienced,  and  so  has  "comfort"  and  "leaning." 
"Embankment  walls,"  "Thames,"  and  "arches"  are 
concrete,  and  bring  to  mind  things  that,  if  we  have 
not  known  them  in  experience,  are  suggestive  of  what 
we  have  wished  to  see  or  know,  and  so  are  potential 
of  feeling.  "Rush,"  "flocking,"  "death,"  and  "mar- 
velled "  are  words  of  specific  intensity,  and  therefore 
they  have  force.  For  this  or  like  reasons  the  other 
words  printed  in  italics  also  give  vigor  to  the  style.  The 
word  "he"  in  the  fifth  sentence  from  the  end,  although 
little  more  than  an  articulating  word  and  almost  with- 
out meaning,  has  stress  because  the  arrangement  of  the 
sentence  brings  it  into  contrast  with  "poor"  in  the 
preceding  clause. 


DICTION.  237 

87.  Exercise.  —  Looking  over  the  paragraphs  that 
follow  we  see  that  they  have  the  quality  of  force  in 
very  different  degrees.  There  are  other  reasons  for  it 
than  those  that  we  can  consider  here  ;  but  we  will  see 
whether  they  differ  with  respect  to  diffuseness  —  or 
wordiness  —  and  whether  the  character  of  the  words 
employed  will  in  any  measure  account  for  the  higher 
degree  of  force  in  one  than  in  another.  In  each  indicate 
words  that  seem  to  you  to  be  important,  and  determine 
for  each  paragraph  how  large  a  proportion  of  the  whole 
number  of  words  this  is.  In  which  do  the  important 
words  have  -the  most  sharply  denned  and  positive  sig- 
nificance ?  In  which  the  least  ?  In  addition  to  the 
words  that  are  important  in  themselves,  do  you  find  in 
any  of  the  paragraphs  words  that  are  ordinarily  unim- 
portant and  that  yet  seem  to  have  especial  significance 
here  ?  In  which  are  there  the  greater  number  of  words 
to  which  you  would  give  an  added  stress  in  reading  the 
paragraphs  aloud  ?  In  which  of  them  does  the  diction 
seem  the  more  uniform  in  character  ?  Do  you  find  in 
any  of  them  any  alternation  of  words  which  are  especially 
intellectual  in  character  with  those  that  are  more 
emotional  ?  How  would  this  affect  the  force  of  a 
composition?  Can  you  now  account  in  part  for  the 
different  degrees  of  force  in  the  paragraphs  ? 

Elizabeth's  mind  was  too  full  for  conversation,  but  she 
saw  and  admired  every  remarkable  spot  and  point  of 
view.  They  gradually  ascended  for  half  a  mile,  and  then 
found  themselves  at  the  top  of  a  considerable  eminence, 


V 


238  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

where  the  wood  ceased,  and  the  eye  was  instantly  caught 
by  Pemberley  House,  situated  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
valley,  into  which  the  road,  with  some  abruptness,  wound. 
It  was  a  large,  handsome  stone  building,  standing  well  on 
high  ground,  and  backed  by  a  ridge  of  high  woody  hills ; 
and  in  front  a  stream  of  some  natural  importance  was 
swelled  into  greater,  but  without  any  artificial  appearance. 
Its  banks  were  neither  formal  nor  falsely  adorned.  Eliza- 
beth was  delighted.  She  had  never  seen  a  place  for  which 
nature  had  done  more,  or  where  natural  beauty  had  been 
so  little  counteracted  by  an  awkward  taste.  They  were 
all  of  them  warm  in  their  admiration ;  and  at  that  moment 
she  felt  that  to  be  mistress  of  Pemberley  might  be  some- 
thing. JANE  AUSTEN  :  Pride  and  Prejudice. 

It  is  the  vogue,  nowadays,  to  sneer  at  picturesque 
writing.  Professor  Seeley,  for  reasons  of  his  own,  appears 
to  think  that  whilst  politics,  and,  I  presume,  religion,  may 
be  made  as  interesting  as  you  please,  history  should  be  as 
dull  as  possible.  This,  surely,  is  a  jaundiced  view.  If 
there  is  one  thing  it  is  legitimate  to  make  more  interesting 
than  another,  it  is  the  varied  record  of  man's  life  upon 
earth.  So  long  as  we  have  human  hearts  and  await 
human  destinies,  so  long  as  we  are  alive  to  the  pathos, 
the  dignity,  the  comedy  of  human  life,  so  long  shall  we 
continue  to  rank  above  the  philosopher,  higher  than  the 
politician,  the  great  artist,  be  he  called  dramatist  or  his- 
torian, who  makes  us  conscious  of  the  divine  movement 
of  events,  and  of  our  fathers  who  were  before  us.  Of 
course"  we  assume  accuracy  and  labor  in  our  animated 
historian ;  though  for  that  matter,  other  things  being 
equal,  I  prefer  a  lively  liar  to  a  dull  one. 

AUGUSTINE  BIRRELL  :    Obiter  Dicta. 

88.  Elegance  as  a  Quality  of  Diction.  —  While  no 
writer  whose  style  lacks  force  can  hope  for  any  perma- 
nent place  in  literature,  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  a 


DICTION.  239 

style  which  is  too  emotional,  one  which  arouses  emotion 
on  insufficient  grounds,  is  equally  faulty,  equally  sure  of 
bringing  the  author  to  forgetfulness.  A  style  which 
has  the  quality  of  elegance  is  one  which  displays  taste 
in  the  author,  and  a  writer  who  has  taste  will  write  with 
only  so  much  show  of  emotion  as  his  subject  demands. 
Further,  in  addition  to  choosing  words  that  will  make 
his  meaning  clear  and  that  will  give  to  his  work  the 
degree  of  force  that  seems  to  him  fitting,  he  will  be 
careful  to  employ  only  such  words  and  expressions  as 
are  in  keeping  with  the  subject.  It  may  be  said  that 
the  term  elegance  is  not  a  thoroughly  good  one  for  the 
quality  which  gives  us  pleasure  in  writing  in  which  a 
refined  taste  is  evident,  but  there  seems  to  be  no  better. 
The  term  beauty  has  been  employed,  since  words  that 
are  fitting  by  that  very  fact  appeal  to  the  aesthetic 
sense  ;  but  as  this  term  has  another  use  in  its  applica.- 
tion  to  that  which  is  beautiful  in  subject  matter  and 
in  form,  it  is  objectionable.  Propriety  has  also  been 
employed  as  a  designation  for  the  quality  of  style  which 
we  are  here  considering,  but  the  word  is  too  negative  in 
character  and  suggestion  to  be  acceptable.  In  the 
narrow  sense  a  style  is  elegant  which  is  distinguished 
by  delicacy,  refinement,  and  other  like  qualities  that 
appeal  to  a  cultivated  aesthetic  sense  ;  but,  as  we  are 
using  the  word  here,  we  may  understand  elegance  merely 
as  that  quality  which  results  from  the  use  of  words  and 
expressions  that  are  fitting. 

In  the  quotations  that  follow  elegance  is  shown  in  the 


240          COMPOSITIOIV  AND  RHETORIC. 

lines  from  Tennyson,  and  the  lack  of  it  in  those  from 
Thomson. 

And  all  night  long  his  face  before  her  lived, 
As  when  a  painter,  poring  on  a  face, 
Divinely  thro'  all  hindrance  finds  the  man 
Behind  it,  and  so  paints  him  that  his  face, 
The  shape  and  color  of  a  mind  and  life, 
Lives  for  his  children,  ever  at  its  best 
And  fullest ;  so  the  face  before  her  lived, 
Dark-splendid,  speaking  in  the  silence,  full 
Of  noble  things,  and  held  her  from  her  sleep. 

ALFRED  TENNYSON  :  Lancelot  and  Elaine. 

In  these  nine  lines  observe  the  clear  distinctness, 
the  beauty  of  the  subject  matter,  and  the  warmth  and 
color  which  glow  in  the  single  words,  no  one  of  which 
is  out  of  harmony  with  the  tone  of  the  poetry. 

The  sun 

Scarce  spreads  o'er  ether  the  dejected  day, 
Faint  are  his  gleams,  and  ineffectual  shoot 
His  struggling  rays  in  horizontal  lines, 
Through  the  thick  air. 

JAMES  THOMSON  :    Winter. 

Here  in  four  lines  we  find  three  words  at  least  that 
belong  properly  to  the  diction  of  prose,  rather  than  to 
that  of  poetry.  Taste  in  any  high  degree  was  evidently 
not  a  part  of  Thomson's  equipment  for  the  exercise  of 
his  art,  and  elegance  is  therefore  lacking  in  many  of 
his  lines. 

89.  Exercise.  —  The  first  of  the  selections  following 
is  an  idyllic  picture  of  part  of  the  Maine  sea-coast  as  the 


DICTION.  241 

writer  holds  it  in  a  loving  memory  ;  the  other  is  an  alto- 
gether different  thing,  a  part  of  Dickens's  beautiful  story 
of  the  death  of  little  Nell.  Look  them  over,  and  say 
which  is  meant  to  have  the  more  imaginative  appeal,  and 
which  is  meant  to  reach  elemental  feeling  the  more 
directly  ?  Which  is  meant  to  hold  the  reader's  thought 
close  to  feelings  that  have  been  a  part  of  experience, 
and  in  which  is  the  effort  made  to  carry  the  thought  to 
wide  reaches  of  feeling  colored  by  imagination  ?  Which 
should  show  the  more  restraint  in  form  and  phrasing, 
and  in  which  may  the  words  chosen  have  the  wider 
range  ?  Why  ?  What  words  in  this  first  selection 
would,  as  you  judge,  be  inappropriate  if  used  in  the 
second  ? 


The  coves  and  indents,  the  bays  and  river-mouths, 
along  the  coast  of  Maine,  are  a  part  of  my  earlier  mem- 
ories. All  the  lovely  region  seems  to  me  still  a  sort  of 
fairyland,  which,  when  a  little  child,  was  all  my  own.  .  .  . 
I  can  still  feel  the  cool,  salt  breath  there  steal  in  from  outer 
deeps,  and  see  it  draw  a  film  across  the  stars.  I  can  still 
hear  the  cry  of  the  great  winds,  with  storms  upon  their 
wings  sweeping  in  from  reefs  and  ledges,  singing  their 
high  death-song  of  wreck  and  drowning  men.  The  rafts, 
the  sun-soaked  hulls  and  tarry  ropes  of  the  coasters,  the 
light-houses,  the  islands  —  whose  primeval  pines  stood 
like  dark  sentinels,  and  whose  sea-edges  were  fringed  with 
tender  green  of  dripping  birch  and  willow  —  the  elf-like 
sails  flitting  here  and  there,  the  great  ships  taking  sun 
and  shadow  and  stealing  away  like  gray  ghosts,  the  gloom 
of  cliff  and  steep,  the  rolling  fogs  pierced  by  a  red  flame 
of  sunset,  the  vast  tossing  stretch'es  of  live  sunshine  and 
azure  and  foam,  of  rose  and  silver,  of  violet  mists  whose 


242  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

dim  distances  veiled  a  still  farther  and  yet  undiscovered 
country  —  all  these  remain  in  my  recollection,  clothed 
with  an  atmosphere,  half  dream,  half  reality,  of  vivid 
beauty,  that  makes  the  wild  sea-region  all  to  me  that  a 
land-locked  Arcady  or  Tempe  has  been  to  the  fancy  of 
poets  and  singers  from  the  early  days  to  this. 

HARRIET  PRESCOTT  SPOFFORD. 

She  was  dead.  No  sleep  so  beautiful  and  calm,  so  free 
from  trace  of  pain,  so  fair  to  look  upon.  She  seemed  a 
creature  fresh  from  the  hand  of  God  and  waiting  for  the 
breath  of  life ;  not  one  who  had  lived  and  suffered  death. 
Her  couch  was  dressed  with  here  and  there  some  winter- 
berries  and  green  leaves,  gathered  in  a  spot  she  had  been 
used  to  favor.  "  When  I  die,  put  near  me  something  that 
has  loved  the  light,  and  had  the  sky  above  it  always." 
These  were  her  words. 

She  was  dead.  Dear,  gentle,  patient,  noble  Nell  was 
dead.  Her  little  bird  —  a  poor  slight  thing,  the  pressure 
of  a  finger  would  have  crushed  —  was  stirring  nimbly  in 
its  cage  ;  and  the  strong  heart  of  its  child-mistress  was 
mute  and  motionless  for  ever.  Where  were  the  traces  of 
her  early  cares,  her  sufferings,  and  fatigues !  All  gone. 
Sorrow  was  dead,  indeed,  in  her ;  but  peace  and  perfect 
happiness  were  born  —  imaged  in  her  tranquil  beauty 
and  profound  repose.  CHARLES  DICKENS. 

Comparing  the  first  of  these  excerpts  with  the  one 
on  page  237  from  Jane  Austen,  which  should  you  say 
shows  in  greater  degree  the  quality  of  elegance  as 
understood  in  the  narrower  sense  of  appeal  to  love  of 
the  beautiful  ?  Do  you  find  the  element  of  thought 
which  is  not  kindled  by  feeling  greater  in  one  than  in 
the  other  ?  Do  you  find  in  either  of  them  words  which 
you  think  inappropriately  chosen  for  the  purpose  of 


DICTION.  243 

making    the  description  a  living  picture  in   the  mind  ? 
Which  do  you  enjoy  the  more  ?     Why  ? 

90.  Fine  Writing.  —  What  is  called  "fine  writing" 
is  one  of  the  faults  of  diction  against  which  a  cultivated 
taste  should  protect  us.  It  consists  in  the  use  of  pre- 
tentious terms  for  simple  ideas,  as  in  the  sentence, 
"  This  ended  the  row  and  saved  the  life  of  one  more 
earthly  sojourner."  This  use  of  over-important  words 
is  sometimes  for  the  definite  purpose  of  making  a  char- 
acter or  a  situation  ridiculous.  In  this  way  Dickens 
makes  the  pompous  vacuity  of  the  perennially  hopeful 
Micawber  doubly  amusing.  " (  Under  the  impression,' 
said  Mr.  Micawber,  'that  your  peregrinations  in  this 
metropolis  have  not  as  yet  been  extensive,  and  that  you 
might  have  some  difficulty  in  penetrating  the  arcana  of 
the  modern  Babylon  in  the  direction  of  the  City  Road 
-  in  short,'  said  Mr.  Micawber  in  another  burst  of 
confidence,  'that  you  might  lose  yourself — I  shall  be. 
happy  to  call  this  evening,  and  install  you  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  nearest  way.'  '  In  such  cases  as  this  the 
use  of  pretentious  language  does  "not  make  us  laugh  at 
the  author  ;  we  perceive  his  purpose  and  laugh  with 
him  ;  but  when  the  author  himself  is  apparently  uncon- 
scious of  the  incongruity  between  subject  and  phrasing 
he  becomes  the  object  of  our  criticism  and  our  mirth. 
The  affectation  of  importance  in  high-sounding  phrases 
not  in  keeping  with  the  theme  is  a  worse  fault  than  the 
failure  to  give  to  the  diction  the  passion  or  the  dignity 
or  the  color  that  the  subject  demands.  We  prize  the 


244  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

diamond  in  the  rough,  but  have  only  contempt  for  the 
paste  jewels  that  flash  a  spurious  radiance,  deceiving 
only  those  who  would  themselves  have  deceived  others. 
With  "  fine  writing  "  we  may  include  sensational  and 
vulgar  writing  of  various  sorts,  all  of  them  violations  of 
elegance. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  What  are  some  of  the  faults  of  diction  that  tend  to 
weaken    style  ?     How    should    you    avoid    them  ?      How 
should  you  define  force  as  a  quality  of  style  ? 

2.  What  do  you  understand  by  precision  as  a  quality 
of  style  ?     How  does  it  differ  from  elegance  ?     Which  is 
more  an  intellectual  quality  of  style  ? 

3.  For  what  sort  of  readers  might  precision  in  some 
kinds  of  writing  result  in  lack  of  clearness  ?     Why  ? 

4.  Would   a  composition   lacking  in   elegance,  as  we 
have  used  the  term  in  this  chapter,  generally  be  as  clear 
as  one  in  which  the  words  have  been  chosen  with  good 
taste  ?    Will  lack  of  elegance  affect  our  understanding  of  a 
composition  in  its  intellectual  or  emotional  significance  ? 
Do  you  think  that  the  reader's  understanding  of  a  writer's 
meaning  as  meaning  merely  may  be  affected  by  the  emo- 
tional suggestions  of  the  words  employed  ?     Should  you 
say,  then,  that  clearness  and  elegance  are  in  a  manner 
dependent  the  one  upon  the  other  or  not  ? 

5.  In  a  composition  in  which  a  high  degree  of  force 
seems  to  you  fitting  which  word  in  each  of  the  following 
groups  should  you  employ,  assuming  that  you  were  free  to 
disregard  considerations  of  precision  and  elegance. 

Praise,  eulogy,  approval. 
Endless,  eternal,  everlasting. 
Fervor,  enthusiasm,  passion. 
Symbol,  sign,  emblem. 
Emasculated,  we^k,  effeminate. 
Elegant,  exquisite,  dainty. 


DICTION.  245 

Effort,  attempt,  struggle. 

Desperation,  discouragement,  despondency. 

Overthrow,  demolish,  destroy. 

Honest,  candid,  sincere. 

Temperate,  dispassionate,  calm. 

Rude,  artless,  awkward. 

6.  Compare  paragraph  from  Choate,  page  74,  with  that 
from  Hamerton,  page  62,  and  say  which  has  the  higher 
degree    of   force.      Do   you    see    any    difference    in    the 
character  of  the  words  to  account  for  this  ?     Is  there  a 
higher  proportion  of  stressed  words  in  the  one  than  in  the 
.other  ?     Is  the  degree  of  stress  given  to  important  words 
greater  in  one  than  in  the  other?     Are  the  stressed  or 
important  words  in  one  more  concrete,  specific,  or  emo- 
tional than  in  the  other  ?     In  the  same  way  compare  the 
extract  from  Sanborn,  page  209,  with  that  from  Jordan, 
page  211,  and  that  from  Spalding,  page  229,  with  that 
from  Irving,  page  79. 

7.  Bring  to  class  a  list  of  authors  whose  writings,  as 
you  think,  would  probably  cultivate  taste  and  elegance  in 
those  who  read  them. 

8.  Read  Milton's  "L'Allegro"  and  "II  Penseroso"  and 
Pope's  "  Dunciad,"  Book  I.,  and  say  which  poet  displays 
the  more  elegance  and  beauty  of  diction.     Can  you  point 
out  any  definite  lack  or  violation  of  these  qualities  in  the 
other  ? 

9.  What  violations   of    elegance    or  precision  do  you 
find  in  the  following,  and  what  changes  should  you  make? 

His  graceful  physiognomy  and  amiable  manners  won  him 
a  far  better  chance  to  go  to  the  West  Indies,  first  to  St. 
Domingo,  then  to  Cuba,  where  he  prepared  with  great  care 
an  expedition  to  Mexico,  to_proye  the  fabulous  stories  of  the 
wealth  of  the  ruling  race  ana  king  Montezuma.  The  simple- 
minded  people  received  them  with  open  hearts,  permitting 
Cortez  to  reach  the  very  heart  of  their  country  and  likewise 
their  treasury  without  serious  opposition.  He  plundered  and 
robbed  till  gold  fairly  lost  its  charm  to  him.  His  rich  hauls 
made  the  ruling  monarch  of  his  fatherland  very  jealous,  but 
his  rich  spoil  brought  him  a  royal  welcome. 


246  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

10.  For  such  words  in  the  following  as  seem  to  you 
lacking  in  force  substitute  others,  and  say  just  what  has 
been  gained  by  the  change. 

Yet  who  were  we  to  frown  angrily  at  him  ?  To  the  present 
time  I  shudder  at  the  thought  of  him.  It  was  not  in  so  great 
degree  his  tallness  and  the  mass  of  his  body,  though  he  was 
so  big  that  the  clipped  pointed  fashion  of  his  beard  —  a 
fashion  then  new  at  court — seemed  on  him  out  of  keeping 
and  lacking  in  manliness  ;  nor  so  much  the  evilly  threatening 
glance  of  his  gray  eyes  —  he  had  a  slight  cast  in  them  ;  nor 
the  grim  suavity  of  his  manner,  and  the  harsh  threatening 
voice  that  permitted  of  no  disguise.  It  was  the  sum  of  these 
things,  the  large  unrefined  presence  of  the 'man  —  that  was 
overpowering — that  made  the  great  hesitate  and  the  poor 
bend  themselves.  And  then  the  understanding  that  men  had 
of  him  !  Though  we  knew  little  of  the  world's  wrong,  all  we 
did  know  had  come  to  us  linked  with  his  name. 

1        ii.    On  one  subject  out  of  each  of  the  two  lists  follow- 
'   ing  write  a  composition  of  two  hundred  words,  taking  care 
to  employ  only  words  that  are  in  keeping.     Compare  the 
diction  of  the  two  compositions,  and  say  what  is  the  dis- 
tinction between  the  kinds  of  words  employed. 

1.  Along  a  country  lane.          i.    The    influence    of     Charles 

2.  A    spot    where    violets  Darwin. 

grow.  2.    The  doctrine  of  the  conser- 

3.  Sailing  toy  boats.  vation  of  energy. 

4.  A  ship  in  a  storm.  3.    An    explanation    of    the   sy- 

5.  An  April  snow-storm.  phon. 

6.  Visiting  another  school.  4.    Cecil     Rhodes    and     South 

7.  After  the  cyclone.  Africa. 

8.  The    village    band    on  5.    The  advantages  of  an  Anglo- 

parade.  American  alliance. 

9.  An    afternoon     in.    the      6.   Arbitration  between  capital 

park.  and  labor. 

7.   The  peace  conference  at  the 
Hague. 

12.  Study  the  following  selections,  and  comment  on 
them,  with  reference  to  elegance,  showing  what  elements 
in  them  contribute  to  this  quality. 


DICTION.  247 

1.  We  dp  not  make  our  own  thoughts  ;   they  grow  in  us 
like  grain  in  wood ;  the  growth  is  of  the  skies,  which  are  of 
nature  —  nature  is  of  God. 

2.  A  ruined  character  is  as  picturesque  as  a  ruined  castle. 
There  are  dark  abysses  and   yawning  gulfs  in  the  human 
heart,  which  can   be  rendered   passable  only   by   bridging 
them  over  with  iron  nerves. 

3.  It  was  a  fine   autumnal  day,  the  sky  was   clear   and 
serene,  and  nature  wore  that  rich  and  golden  livery  which  we 
always  associate  with  the  idea  of  abundance.     The  forests 
had  put  on  their  sober  brown  and  yellow,  while  some  trees 
of  the  tenderer  kind  had  been  nipped  by  the  frosts  into  bril- 
liant dyes  of  orange,  purple  and  scarlet.     Streaming  files  of 
wild  ducks  began  to  make  their  appearance  high  in  the  air ; 
the  bark  of  the  squirrel  might  be  heard  from  the  groves  of 
beech  and  hickory  nuts,  and  the  pensive  whistle  of  the  quail 
at  intervals  from  the  neighboring  stubble-fields. 

4.  I  will  tell  you  what  the  giving  of  knowledge  is  like. 
Suppose,  now,  that  there  were  no  sun  or  stars  in  the  heavens, 
or   anything   that  shone  in  the  black   brow  of   night;   and 
suppose  that  a  lighted  lamp  were  put  in  your  hand,  which 
should  burn,  wasteless  and  clear,  amid  all  the  tempests  that 
should  brood  upon  this  lower  world.      Suppose,  next,  that 
there  were  a  thousand  millions  of  human  beings  on  earth 
with  you,  each  holding  in  his  hand  an  unlighted  lamp,  filled 
with  the  same  oil  as  yours,  and  capable  of  giving  as  much 
light.     Suppose  these  millions  should  come,  one  by  one,  to 
you,  and  light  each  his  lamp  by  yours ;  would  they  rob  you 
of  any  light?     Would  less  of  it  shine  on  your  path?     Would 
your  lamp  burn  more  dimly  for  lighting  a  thousand  millions  ? 

13.  How  may  elegance  be  violated?  What  do  you 
understand  by  "fine  writing?"  What  principle  should 
we  keep  in  mind  to  avoid  fine  writing  ? 

Look  over  the  following  passages.  Point  out  where 
they  violate  the  quality  of  elegance.  Re-write,  or  improve 
them  with  reference  to  elegance. 

1.  These  impecunious  characters  and  adventurers  for  weeks 
and  weeks  haunted  the  parliamentary  buildings. 

2.  The  master  is  placed  there  specially  to  influence  —  in- 
tellectually only,  many  think,  but  as  trully  morally. 

3.  The  house  that  was  lately  in  the  process  of  erection  has 
been  destroyed  in  its  entirety  by  the  devouring  element. 


248  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

4.   A  great  many  things  seemingly  relatively  perfectly  plain, 
are  very  difficult  to  unravel. 

5.  A  petrified    body  of  rotary  motion   has   no  affinity  for 
gramineous  matter. 

6.  The  friends  speedily  called  into  requisition  the  services 
of  the  family  physician,  but  the  disease  had  taken  so  firm  a 
hold  of  his  system  that  after  a  few  hours  of  agony  his  spirit 
winged  its  flights  into  realms  unknown. 

7.  He  came  out  wagging  his  tail  and  making  circles  with 
his  body,  not  unlike  a  cat  in  pursuit  of  her  appendage. 

8.  The   blushing  bride,   leaning  on  the  arm  of  her  fond 
parent,  passed  up  the  aisle,  the  admired  of  all  admirers. 

9.  It  is  due  to  neighbor   Diaz  (President  Diaz  of  Mexico) 
to  say  that  he  is  not  taking  advantage  of  this  unpleasantness 
(the  Spanish-American  War)  to  throw  any  garbage  over  the 
line  fence. 

10.  The  patrons  of  husbandry,  having  thoroughly  examined 
all  the  inventions  of  genius  to  be  found  within  the  machinery 
hall,  retired  to  an  adjoining  department  to  partake  of  some 
liquid  refreshments. 

11.  One  boy  was  in  a  corner  grinding  for  the  examination, 
while  another  tried  to  boost  him  along  whenever  he  got  stuck. 

12.  Mrs.  Bryan  allows  that  she  is  going  to  contribute  to 
the  Commoner,  but  she  is  cock-sure  there  will  be  no  ladies' 
department  in  that  sheet.     It  will  be  interesting  to  see  how 
she  disguises  her  feminine  fist. 


DICTION.  249 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

DICTION. 

CHOICE  AND   ARRANGEMENT   OF    WORDS   FOR    RHYTHM,   TONE- 
COLOR,  AND  EMPHASIS. 

91.   Rhythm  as  an  Element  of  Style It  is  safe  to 

say  that  to  most  people  a  single  clear  note  of  any 
musical  instrument  is  fundamentally  pleasing.  A  mu- 
sical tone,  as  distinguished  from  mere  sound,  is  one  in 
which  the  separate  vibrations  recur  at  regular  inter- 
vals ;  that  is,  it  is  one  in  which  the  vibrations  are 
rhythmical.  Ordinarily  we  think  of  poetry  only  as 
the  rhythmical  form  of  speech  or  writing,  but  all 
good  prose  makes  more  or  less  appeal  to  our  simple 
delight  in  rhythm.  Further,  writing  in  which  -the 
accents  occur  at  somewhat  regular  intervals  is  more 
easily  read  than  that  in  which  accented  syllables  are 
grouped  together,  followed  by  groups  of  unaccented 
syllables.  It  will  generally  be  found  that  impassioned 
prose  is  especially  rhythmical.  The  fervor  that  prompts 
the  utterance  prompts  also  to  the  more  musical,  more 
rhythmical  form,  a  form  that  seems  to  be  required  for 
the  rush  of  feeling  that  must  not  be  stopped  by  a  num- 
ber of  successive  accented  syllables.  In  the  following 


250  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

observe  how  regularly  the  accented  syllables  occur  and 
how  easily  it  is  read  in  consequence.  Syllables  that 
have  a  lighter  or  secondary  accent  are  indicated  by  the 
double  accent  mark. 

|  There  is  a  rare  serenity  in  the  thought  of  death  when 
it  is  known  to  be  the  gate  of  life.  \  This  conviction  Brown- 
ing had,  and  so  his  grief  was  rather  that  of  6ne  whose 
joy  has  westered  earlier.  |  The  sweetest  music  of  his  life 
had  withdrawn  :  \  but  there  was  still  music  for  6ne  to  whom 
life  in  itself  was  a  happiness.  He  had  his  son  and  was 
not  void  of  6ther  solace :  \  but  even  had  it  been  otherwise  \ 
he  was  6"f  the  strenuous  natures  who  never  succumb,  nor 
wish  to  die,  \  whatever  accident  of  mortality  overcome  the 
will  and  the  power.  \ 

WILLIAM  SHARP  :  Robert  Browning. 

Further,  the  important  words,  printed  in  italics,  those 
over  which  the  voice  cannot  pass  lightly,  come  at  some- 
what regular  intervals  ;  and  when  two  or  three  such 
words  come  together,  as  in  the  third  and  fifth  groups 
inclosed  between  the  lines,  these  groups  —  which  are 
each  made  up  of  those  words  that  are  said  connectedly 
with  one  impulse  of  the  breath  —  are  comparatively 
short,  and  therefore  more  time  may  easily  be  given  to 
the  separate  words.  The  rhythm  of  prose  must  not  be 
so  pronounced  as  that  of  verse,  of  course  ;  and  in  this 
the  number  of  unaccented  syllables  between  the  accented 
syllables  varies  irregularly.  A  comparison  of  the  fol- 
lowing paragraph,  a  newspaper  clipping  making  no  pre- 
tense to  literary  quality,  with  the  extract  from  Sharp's 
life  of  Browning  above,  will  show  the  difference  between 
prose  which  is  rhythmical  and  that  which  is  not. 


DICTION.  251 

If  you  have  never  yet  made  you  a  cl6thes-pm  apron, 
d6n't  neglect  to  d6  s6  the  next  idle  time  you  have.  Take 
a  yard  of  s6me  kind  of  go6ds  alike  on  b6th  sides,  put  a 
narrow  hem  at  the  b6ttom  on  the  outsfde.  Turn  it  up 
ten  or  twelve  inches  from  the  b6ttom,  6wing  to  your 
height,  for  you  d6n't  want  to  sto6p  to  reach  the  b6ttom  of 
the  p6cket,  and  stitch  up  each  side  ;  also  a  r6w  through 
the  center,  making  tw6  nice  sized  p6ckets.  Gather  to  a 
band,  and  finish  with  strings  as  they  will  be  fcamd  more 
convenient  than  a  button.  When  the  c!6thes  are  rem6ved 
from  the  line,  hang  your  apron  on  the  wall  wr6ng  side 
6ut,  or  rather  the  p6ckets  inside,  and  your  pins  will  be 
kept  perfectly  clean. 

In  this,  among  other  faults  with  which  we  are  not 
concerned  here,  we  notice  a  remarkable  irregularity  in 
the  recurrence  of  accented  syllables.  As  many  as  four 
and  five  are  found  in  succession  ;  and  clearly  the  voice 
cannot  pass  rhythmically  over  such  a  succession  of 
accents.  Occasionally,  because  of  the  high  emotional 
force  of  the  place  in  which  such  crowding  of  accents 
occurs,  some  delay  is  artistically  fitting,  a  thing  evi- 
dently not  true  here.  From  this  it  will  be  clear  that 
a  great  deal  of  the  pleasure  which  we  have  in  read- 
ing good  prose  and  a  great  deal  of  the  literary  flavor 
which  we  find  in  it,  -is  dependent  upon  the  rhythm 
which  gives  the  character  of  passion  or  fervor  or  state- 
liness  to  the  rounded  periods.  Just  how  to  acquire 
command  of  a  rhythmic  prose  style  it  would  be  hard  to 
say  definitely.  First  we  must  train  the  ear  to  appreciate 
rhythm  and  to  distinguish  writing  which  is  rhythmical 
from  that  which  is  not.  Then  we  shall  be  satisfied  with 


252          COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

our  own  writing  only  when  it  gives  us  the  same  sense 
of  rhythmically  flowing  sound. 

92.  Rhythm  and  Coherence.  —  Primarily  a  composi- 
tion is  coherent  when  it  is  concerned  with  one  subject 
only,  which  is  developed  with  proper  logical  sequence  of 
thought.  The  introduction  of  irrelevant  matter,  a  dis- 
connected and  illogical  order  of  treatment,  an  undue  em- 
phasis of  unimportant  details,  such  change  of  the  diction 
as  changes  the  tone  of  the  writing,  —  any  of  these  is 
enough  to  lessen  the  coherence  of  a  composition.  As 
we  have  seen  in  an  earlier  chapter  (page  4),  coherence 
is  a  necessary  quality  of  style  in  any  writing,  but  a 
composition  may  be  coherent  in  thought  and  in  order  of 
presentation  without  giving  the  impression  of  coherence. 
An  awkward  succession  of  accents  which  makes  the 
reading  broken  and  interrupted,  lessens  the  pleasurable 
feeling  of  coherence  which  we  might  otherwise  have. 
And  on  the  other  hand,  when  accents  occur  with  such 
regularity  as  to  give  the  reader  a  sense  of  smoothly 
flowing  continuity  the  rhythm  adds  distinctly  to  the 
effect  of  coherence.  Coherence,  it  is  to  be  remembered, 
is  an  intellectual  quality  of  style,  as  rhythm  is  more 
particularly  an  emotional  one  ;  and  it  is  noticeable  that 
writers  in  whom  the  union  of  the  intellectual  with  the 
emotional  is  most  pronounced,  such  as  George  Eliot, 
DeQuincey,  and  Ruskin,  are  especially  remarkable  for 
the  flexibility  and  richness  of  their  rhythm. 

93.   Clearness  and  Force  as  Affected  by  Rhythm.  - 
Whatever  increases  the  coherence  of  a  literary  procluc- 


DICTION.  253 

tion  increases  its  clearness  also,  since  it  lessens  the 
mental  effort  which  the  reader  must  make  in  order  to 
hold  the  separate  details  of  the  subject  together  in  their 
proper  relations.  Indirectly,  then,  'a  pleasing  rhythm 
adds  to  the  clearness  of  what  we  write,  and  for  much 
the  same  reason  it  may  give  it  a  higher  degree  of  force. 
The  short  rhythmical  clause  units,  within  which  the  ac- 
cents occur  with  approximate  regularity,  add  to  the 
animated  energy  which  characterizes  the  style  of  the 
following  paragraph. 


Norwich  was  the  capital  of  a  large  and  fruitful  prov- 
ince. It  was  the  residence  of  a  bishop  and  a  chapter. 
It  was  the  chief  seat  of  the  chief  manufacture  of  the 
realm.  Some  men  distinguished  by  learning  and  science 
had  recently  dwelt  there ;  and  no  place  in  the  kingdom, 
except  the  capital  and  the  universities,  had  more  attrac- 
tions for  the  curious.  The  library,  the  museum,  the 
aviary,  and  the  botanical  garden  of  Sir  Thomas  Browne, 
were  thought  by  the  Fellows  of  the  Royal  Society  well 
worthy  of  a  long  pilgrimage.  Norwich  had  also  a  court 
in  miniature. 

THOMAS  BABINGTON  MACAULAY  :  History  of  England. 


In  this  connection  it  is  worth  remembering  that 
Macaulay  was  an  orator  to  whom  people  listened  gladly. 
In  the  preceding  chapter  we  have  seen  that  his  style  is 
characterized  by  clearness,  a  necessary  quality  in  ora- 
tory ;  and  we  may  now  add  rhythmical  incisiveness  to 
that  as  another  quality  which  is  effective  in  any  writing 
that  is  to  have  oratorical  character. 


254  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIL. 

94.  Tone-Color.  —  If  what  we  write  is  to  have  a 
pleasing  rhythm  not  only  must  it  have  an  approximately 
regular  succession  of  accents  and  clauses  of  nearly 
uniform  length,  but  the  sounds  must  also  be  so  com- 
bined as  to  follow  each  other  easily  and  with  some 
degree  of  correspondence  to  the  meaning.  When  the 
subject  matter  and  the  style  are  meant  to  appeal  espe- 
cially to  the  aesthetic  sense,  the  round  vowel  and  the 
more  vocal  consonant  tones,  such  as  the  liquids  r  and  /, 
are  in  general  to  be  employed  more  frequently  than 
the  harsher  and  less  flowing  tones.  This  is  of 
course  more  particularly  true  in  poetry,  but  even  in 
prose  it  is  important  that  the  succession  of  sounds  be 
agreeable  and  in  keeping.  Tone-color  is  most  form- 
ally and  distinctly  employed  in  rhyme,  but  as  that  is  not 
found  in  prose  we  are  not  concerned  with  it  here. 
Alliteration,  the  repetition  of  the  same  initial  consonant 
in  two  or  more  words  or  emphatic  syllables  which  follow 
one  another  at  short  intervals,  assonance,  the  successive 
employment  of  vowels  having  like  tonal  quality,  and 
onomatopoeia,  the  use  of  sounds  which  are  in  a  measure 
suggestive  of  the  sense,  are  other  forms  of  it.  In  the 
older  Rhetorics  these  various  effects  of  tone-color  have 
been  treated  under  the  general  term  Euphony ;  but  as 
that  implies  in  general  pleasant  tonal  effects,  it  seems 
not  sufficiently  accurate  and  comprehensive.  Tone- 
color  may  be  fundamentally  pleasing  or  displeasing, 
according  to  the  subject  matter.  The  law  of  its  use  is 
that  it  shall  contribute  to  the  unity  of  impression  which 


DICTION.  255 

the  composition  is  to  give.  If  the  mood  in  which  the 
writing  is  cast  is  an  animated  one  there  must  be  such 
alternation  of  sounds  as  may  be  pronounced  easily  and 
rapidly  in  succession.  If  the  mood  is  graver  the  round 
vowels,  which  delay  utterance,  or  such  consonants  as  do 
not  follow  one  another  easily,  may  be  employed.  Even 
a  succession  of  harsh  sounds,  sounds  the  opposite  of 
euphonious,  may  sometimes  be  most  fitting.  It  may 
be  added  that  in  prose  noticeable  alliteration  is  to  be 
avoided. 

The /ielcis /all  southward,  abrupt  and  broken, 
To  the  /ow  /ast  edge  of  the  /ong,  /one  /and. 

If  a  step  should  round  or  a  word  be  .spoken, 

Would  a  gho.rt  not  rise  at  the  .strange  gue-rt'.r  hand  ? 
ALGERNON  CHARLES  SWINBURNE  :  A  Forsaken  Garden. 

In  this  we  have  alliteration,  assonance,  and  onomato- 
poeia of  such  sort  as  is  not  found,  perhaps,  outside  of 
Swinburne's  poetry.  The  alliterative  fs  in  the  first 
half  of  the  first  line  are  especially  in  keeping  with  the 
tone  of  melancholy  musing  which  the  title  suggests  as 
characteristic  of  the  poem,  and  the  hard  Us  of  the 
second  half  of  the  line  increase  the  sense  of  abruptness 
in  meaning.  In  the  second  line  a  retarded  rhythm  is 
fitting  for  the  mood,  and  the  alliteration  of  the  liquid 
fs  and  the  assonance  of  the  round  Js  and  as  are  strik- 
ingly effective  in  increasing  the  delay.  In  the  next 
line  the  softer  s's  give  the  sense  of  hush  which  is  the 
feeling  that  this  line  is  meant  to  convey.  Onomatopoeia 
is  but  a  more  specific  term  for  Harmony,  which  is  the 


256  COMPOSITION  A  XI)  RUE  TL MY  t '. 

correspondence  between  sound  and  meaning  continued 
throughout  a  composition.  For  an  excellent  example  of 
this  read  the  following  description  of  the  sudden  burst- 
ing forth  of  the  music  of  the  organ  from  "  Westminster 
Abbey"  in  Washington  Irving's  ••  Sketch  Hook."  Ob- 
serve how  large  a  proportion  of  round  vowel  and  full 
Consonant  tones  there  are,  and  note  that  the  reading 
must  be  slow  and  stately.  The  sounds  throughout  are 
largely  those  that  have  distinct  musical  quality. 

Suddenly  the  notes  of  the  deep-laboring  organ  burst 
upon  the  ear,  falling  with  doubled  and  redoubled  intensity. 
and  rolling,  as  it  were,  huge  billows  of  sound.  I  low  well 
do  their  volume  and  grandeur  accord  with  this  mighty 
building  !  With  what  pomp  do  they  swell  through  its  vast 
vaults,  and  breathe  their  awful  harmony  through  these 
caves  of  death,  and  make  the  silent  sepulchre  vocal !  — 
And  now  they  rise  in  triumphant  acclamation,  heaving 
higher  and  higher  their  accordant  notes,  and  piling  sound 
on  sound. —  And  now  they  pause,  and  the  soft  voices  of 
the  choir  break  out  into  sweet  gushes  of  melody  ;  they 
soar  aloft,  and  warble  along  the  roof,  and  seem  to  play 
about  those  lofty  vaults  like  the  pure  airs  of  heaven. 
Again  the  pealing  organ  heaves  its  thrilling  thunders. 
compressing  air  into  music  and  rolling  it  forth  upon  the 
soul.  What  long-drawn  cadences  !  What  solemn,  sweep- 
ing concords  !  It  grows  more  and  more  dense  and  power- 
ful—  it  fills  the  vast  pile,  and  seems  to  jar  the  very  walls 
—  the  ear  is  stunned  —  the  senses  are  overwhelmed.  And 
now  it  is  winding  up  in  full  jubilee  —  it  is  rising  from  the 
earth  to  heaven  —  the  very  soul  seems  rapt  away,  and 
floated  upwards  on  this  swelling  tide  of  harmony. 

95.   Elegance  as  Affected  by  Rhythm  and  Tone-Color. 
—  A  style  which  is  rhythmical  and  in   which  there  is 


DICTION.  257 

an  agreeable  and  fitting  succession  of  sounds,  in  this 
respect  at  least  appeals  to  our  aesthetic  sense.  \Yhen 
properly  employed,  then,  both  rhythm  and  tone-color 
contribute  to  elegance  in  writing.  A  severe  taste  might 
object  to  the  tone-color  of  the  lines  from  Swinburne 
on  the  ground  of  its  being  too  noticeable;  but  aside 
from  the  possibility  of  that  criticism,  they  gain  in  the 
quality  of  elegance,  as  the  sounds  are  not  only  pleasing 
in  themselves  in  the  succession  in  which  they  are  ar- 
ranged, but  they  are  also  fitted  to  the  sense. 

96.  The  General  Law  of  Emphasis Any  composi- 
tion which  may  justly  be  given  rank  as  literature  must 
present  things  real  and  imaginative,  with  such  skillful 
placing  of  emphasis  as  will  make  the  writing  interesting 
and  significant.  A  treatise  on  geometry  is  not  properly 
literature  ;  and  for  such  a  treatise  not  emphasis,  but  the 
absolute  suppression  of  emphasis,  is  the  thing  of  first 
importance.  The  mathematical  writer  presents  truths 
in  their  known  logical  relations,  and  in  his  presentation 
he  must  be  careful  to  show  all  the  truth  in  its  true 
relations  ;  for  such  showing  emphasis-  of  any  sort  is 
not  fitting.  But  literature  as  distinguished  from  other 
writing  is  an  appeal  to  feeling,  and  to  make  such  appeal 
effective  the  writer  brings  into  prominence  those  things 
that  are  to  him  most  significant,  that  the  reader  may 
see  the  matter  as  he  sees  it,  and  feel  about  it  as  he 
feels.  This  emphasis  must  not  be'  apparent ;  it  must, 
in  fact,  be  so  disguised  that  it  will  affect  the  reader 
without  alienating  him;  for,  while  we  sit  down  to  an 


258  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

entertaining  book  with  the  definite  expectation  of  having 
our  sensibilities  played  upon,  we  instinctively  resent  any- 
thing on  the  part  of  the  writer  in  the  way  of  assumption 
of  ability  to  play  upon  them. 

97.    How  Emphasis   is   Secured Emphasis    gained 

by  the  employment  of  more  distinct  rhythm,  or  by 
an  increase  of  clearness  and  coherence,  will,  perhaps, 
affect  a  paragraph  or  more,  but  emphasis  may  be 
given  to  a  single  word  'or  phrase.  In  the  sentence 
the  position  of  importance  is  at  the  beginning  or  at 
the  end,  and  a  word  placed  in  either  position  is  so 
made  emphatic.  The  word  at  the  beginning  of  the  sen- 
tence naturally  attracts  more  attention  than  the  words 
that  follow  ;  and  the  word  that  concludes  the  sentence 
remains  in  the  mind  during  the  brief  pause  before  a  new 
sentence  is  begun,  and  therefore  makes  a  more  positive 
impression  than  those  immediately  preceding.  If  impor- 
tant words  can  be  placed  at  the  beginning  or  end  of  the 
sentence,  their  importance  will,  therefore,  be  the  more 
certainly  apparent.  Often  this  will  make  necessary  a 
change  from  the,  normal  order  of  words  in  the  English 
sentence,  and-  it  at  once  becomes  a  question  whether 
the  new  order  is  not  so  glaringly  awkward  as  to  more 
than  offset  the  gain  in  emphasis.  Further,  the  em- 
phasis may  be  so  pronounced  as  to  be  in  bad  taste,  or 
it  may  be  unduly  abrupt  and  startling.  Even  when 
these  objections  do  not  hold,  a  too  frequent  employ- 
ment of  the  device  gives  the  style  an  air  of  artificiality. 
This  is  one  of  the  defects  of  Macaulay's  style,  a  defect 


I/ 


DICTION.  259 

which  the  following  passage  shows,  perhaps,  in  a  charac- 
teristic degree. 

i.  There  Siddons,  in  the  prime  of  her  majestic  beauty, 
looked  with  emotion  on  a  scene  surpassing  all  the  imita- 
tions of  the  stage.  2.  There  the  historian  of  the  Roman 
Empire  thought  of  the  days  when  Cicero  pleaded  the 
cause  of  Sicily  against  Verres,  and  when,  before  a  senate 
which  still  retained  some  show  of  freedom,  Tacitus  thun- 
dered against  the  oppressor  of  Africa.  3.  There  were 
seen,  side  by  side,  the  greatest  painter  and  the  greatest 
scholar  of  the  age.  4.  The  spectacle  had  allured  Reynolds 
from  that  easel  which  has  preserved  to  us  the  thoughtful 
foreheads  of  so  many  writers  and  statesmen,  and  the 
sweet  smiles  of  so  many  noble  matrons.  5.  It  had  in- 
duced Parr  to  suspend  his  labors  in  that  dark  and  pro- 
found mine  from  which  he  had  extracted  a  vast  treasure 
of  erudition,  a  treasure  too  often  buried  in  the  earth,  too 
often  paraded  with  injudicious  and  inelegant  ostentation, 
but  st\\\  precious,  massive,  and  splendid. 

T.   B.   MACAULAY  :    Warren  Hastings. 

The  arrangement  of  words  in  the  sentence  in  such 
order  as  to  secure  the  effect  of  climax  contributes  to 
emphasis.  Climax  stimulates  interest  by  the  continual 
suggestion  of  something  more  important  to  follow,  and 
the  expectation  thus  aroused  serves  to  give  a  heightened 
significance  to  the  reading.  But  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  unless  the  subject  has  sufficient  dignity  and 
weight,  climax  will  give  merely  the  effect  of  bombast 
and  pomposity.  Sentences  which  are  to  have  the  easy 
flow  of  conversation  may  fittingly  end  with  little  words  ; 
and  in  any  case  the  preposition  completing  the  verb  is 
a  part  of  the  verb  and  so  may  properly  conclude  the 


260  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

sentence,  as  in,  "  That  is  the  only  conclusion  I  can 
come  to."  Ordinarily  a  sentence  ends  most  musically 
when  the  last  syllable  is  unaccented  and  is  preceded  by 
an  accented  syllable. 

Emphasis  is  also  secured  by  the  repetition  of  words 
and  phrases  and  by  such  balanced  antithetical  arrange- 
ment of  words,  phrases,  and  sentences  as  will  make 
these  expressions  prominent  through  the  relation  of  one 
part  to  another  which  the  arrangement  suggests.  Any 
change  from  the  normal  order  of  words  in  the  English 
sentence  has  a  tendency  to  give  emphasis  to  the  expres- 
sion placed  in  the  unusual  position.  In  the  following 
sentences  these  methods  of  securing  emphasis  are  illus- 
trated, and  the  emphatic  expressions,  or  expressions 
through  the  employment  of  which  emphasis  has  been 
gained,  are  printed  in  italics. 

1.  His  successes  in  parliament,  his  successes  tHrough  the 
war,  are  honest  successes  of  a  brave  man. 

2.  This  universe,  ah  me  —  what  could  the  wild  man 
know  of  it ;  what  can  we  yet  know  ?     That  it  is  a  force, 
and  a  thousand-fold  complexity  of  forces,  a  force  which  is 
not  we.     That  is  all ;  it  is  not  we,  it  is  altogether  different 
from  us.     Force,  force,  everywhere  force :  we  ourselves  a 
mysterious  force  in  the  center  of  that. 

The  third  and  fourth  sentences  following  are  exam- 
ples of  balance  and  antithesis  :  - 

3.  Thus  the  successors  of  the  old  Cavaliers  had  turned 
demagogues ;  the  successors  of  the  old  Roundheads  had 
turned  courtiers. 


DICTION.  26l 

4.  Both   readily  found   what   they   sought ;  and  both 
obstinately  refused  to  see  anything  but  what  they  sought. 

5.  In  nations  broken  to  the  curb,  in  nations  long  accus- 
tomed to  be  transferred  from  one  tyrant  to  another,  a  man 
without  eminent  qualities  may  easily  gain  supreme  power. 

6.  Nobleman  and  commoner  and  slave  and  alien  were 
mixed  in  one  madly  hurrying  throng. 

The  following  passages  will  show  how  climax  aids  in 
securing  emphasis  :  — 

7.  To  dream  of  such  a  journey  would   be  madness; 
to  devise  it,  a  thing  incredible ;  to  do  it,  a  deed  impossi- 
ble.    But  Grant  was  capable  of  them  all  and  equal  to  the 
work. 

8.  Your  heart  gives  a  great  bound  when  you   think 
what  it  is  —  the  regimental  flag — and  glancing  along  the 
front,  you  count  fifteen  of  those  colors  that  were  borne  at 
Pea  Ridge,  waved  at  Shiloh,  glorified  at  Stone  River,  and 
riddled  at  Chickamauga. 

The  close  of  Edmund  Burke's  speech  on  the  Impeach- 
ment of  Warren  Hastings  furnishes  an  excellent  exam- 
ple of  the  effect  of  climax  :  —  • 

9.  Therefore,  hath  it  been  ordered  by  the  Commons 
of  Great  Britain,  that  I  impeach  Warren  Hastings  of  high 
crimes  and  misdemeanors.     I  impeach  him  in  the  name 
of  the  Commons  House  of  Parliament,  whose  trust  he  has 
betrayed.     I  impeach  him  in   the  name   of  the  English 
nation,  whose  ancient  honor  he  has  sullied.     I  impeach 
him  in  the  name  of  the  people  of  India,  whose  rights  he 
has  trodden  under  foot,  and  whose  country  he  has  turned 
into    a    desert.     Lastly,  in    the   name    of    human    nature 
itself,  in  the  name  of  both  sexes,  in  the  name  of  every 
age,  in  the  name  of  every  rank,  I  impeach  the  common 
enemy  and  oppressor  of  all. 


262  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

98.  Selection  a  Form  of  Emphasis When  a  painter 

transfers  a  landscape  to  his  canvas  he  does  not  put  into 
the  picture  all  of  the  actual  scene  which  he  is  represent- 
ing.     In   order  that   the   painting  may   have  the  more 
elementary  qualities,  unity  and    coherence,  he    empha- 
sizes certain  details  and  suppresses  others  ;  and  the  value 
of  his   work  will  depend  largely  upon  his  judgment  in 
deciding   what    details    will    contribute    to   the    general 
effect  and  what  would  be  inharmonious.     The  camera  is 
faithful  to  fact  ;  and  because  it  can  have  no  selective 
judgment,   and   can   neither  emphasize    one    detail   nor 
suppress  another,  a  photograph   is  not  a  work  of  art, 
and  the  lens  can  never  take  the  place  of  the  creative 
genius  of  the  artist.      It  is  true  that  the  photograph  is 
often  very  artistic  ;  but  that  is  because  it  reproduces,  not 
nature,  but  something  in  the  arrangement  of  which  the 
selective  judgment  of  the  artist  has  been  exercised.      In 

.  literary  composition  this  principle  is  as  valid  as  in  the 
art  of  the  pencil-and  the  brush.  The  writer  must  first 
make  choice  of  those  details  that,  from  his  point  of 
view,  are  especially  important,  and  important  in  such  a 
way  as  to  contribute  to  the  general  significance  of  the 
composition.  In  the  selection  of  his  material  the  writer 
places  emphasis  upon  what  he  wishes  to  make  significant 
in  the  mind  of  the  reader,  and  the  mere  dwelling  upon 
certain  phases  of  the  question  to  the  exclusion  of  others 
secures  this  result. 

99.  Force  and  Emphasis Emphasis  contributes  to 

force,  but  differs  from  it  in  being  a  less  constant  feature 


DICTION.  263 

in  a  composition.  The  employment  of  a  greater  degree 
of  force  in  one  place  than  in  another  for  the  purpose  of 
drawing  particular  attention  to  some  special  phase  of 
the  subject  is  known  more  specifically  as  emphasis.  At 
the  same  time  emphasis  in  the  sentence,  by  whatever 
devices  secured,  is  one  of  the  elements  of  force.  Force 
may  be  a  large  element  in  the  style  of  a  writer  who  em- 
ploys very  little  emphasis,  but  in  general  the  two  are 
found  together.  Carlyle,  for  instance,  is  remarkable  for 
a  very  high  degree  of  force,  and  no  less  so  for  emphasis. 
The  following  sentence  from  "  Heroes  and  Hero  Wor- 
ship "  is  typical  of  his  method  of  securing  force  through 
emphasis. 

No  more  immoral  act  can  be  done  by  a  human  crea- 
ture ;  for  it  is  the  beginning  of  all  immorality,  or  rather  it 
is  the  impossibility  henceforth  of  any  morality  whatso- 
ever :  the  innermost  moral  soul  is  paralyzed  thereby,  cast 
into  fatal  magnetic  sleep. 

In  this  we  have  climax  and  repetition,  for  the  second 
of  the  two  clauses  after  the  colon  is  but  a  repetition  in 
more  emphatic  form  of  the  one  preceding  it  ;  and  the 
clause  just  before  the  colon  is  also  a  repetition  of  the 
same  sort.  Observe  that  the  final  clause  is  the  one  of 
most  significance,  and  note,  too,  that  in  the  two  final 
clauses  after  the  colon,  out  of  twelve  words  all  but 
"the,"  "is,"  and  "into"  will  naturally  be  stressed  in 
reading.  The  increased  force  in  these  last  clauses  is 
in  keeping  with  the  climax  resulting  from  the  arrange- 
ment of  clauses  in  the  order  of  increasing  importance, 


J 


264  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


EXERCISES. 

i .  What  do  you  understand  by  rhythm  ?  Do  you 
think  that  the  rhythm  of  prose  affects  the  ease  with  which 
you  read  it  ?  If  so,  how  and  why  ?  Do  children  who 
speak  pieces  generally  prefer  prose  or  poetry  ?  Why  ? 

2.  Comment  on  the  rhythmic  character  of  "  The  Steam 
Carriage,"  in  Appendix  C. 

3.  If  you  were  to  write  an  oration  for  some  occasion, 
should  you  think  it  best  to  employ  long  or  short  rhythmic 
units  ?     Why  ?     What  would   be  the  result  of    crowding 
accented    syllables  together  in  unimportant  words  ?    and 
what  the  effect  of  a  succession  of  seven  or  eight  unimpor- 
tant words  ? 

4.  Bring  to  class  a  newspaper  clipping  that  seems  to 
you  deficient  in  rhythm,  and  point  out  its  more  glaring 
rhythmical  faults. 

5.  What  do  you  understand  by  tone-color?     Do  you 
understand  that  distinct  effects  of  tone-color  may  result 
from  a  succession  of  like  sounds  or  from  a  repetition  of 
the  same  sound  only  ?     When  might  the  employment  of 
harsh  sounds  be  justifiable  ? 

6.  In  what  kinds  of  composition  should  you  expect  to 
find  tone-color  the  more'  pronounced  ?     Should  you  think 
it  well  to  give  prose  as  distinct  rhythm  as  poetry  or  not  ? 
Why?     Do  you  think    that  the  suggestion  of    rhyme  in 
prose  is  pleasant  or  not  ? 

7.  Where  in  the  sentence  should  you  place  words  that 
you  wish  to  make  emphatic  ?     Why  ? 

8.  How  do  you  understand  that  we  may  secure  em- 
phasis by  selection  ?     Study  the  following  passage,  and  say 
whether  the  author  has  followed  the  principle  of  selection, 
and  if  so  say  what  she  has  made  emphatic. 

A  wide  plain,  where  the  broadening  Floss  hurries  on  be- 
tween its  green  banks  to  the  sea,  and  the  loving  tide,  rushing 
to  meet  it,  checks  its  passage  with  an  impetuous  embrace. 
On  this  mighty  tide,  the  black  ships,  laden  with  the  freshly 
scented  fir  planks,  with  rounded  sacks  of  oil-bearing  seed, 


DICTION.  265 

or  with  the  dark  glitter  of  coal,  are  borne  along  to  St.  Ogg's. 
This  town  shows  its  aged,  fluted,  red  roofs  and  the  broad 
gables  of  its  wharves,  between  the  low-wooded  hill  and  the 
river  brink,  tingeing  the  water  with  a  soft  purple  hue  under 
the  transient  glance  of  this  February  sun. 

Far  away,  on  each  hand,  stretch  the  rich  pastures,  and  the 
patches  of  dark  earth  made  ready  for  the  seed  of  broad- 
leaved  green  crops,  or  touched,  already,  with  the  tint  of  the 
tencler-bladed  autumn-sown  grain.  The  distant  ships  seem 
to  be  lifting  their  masts  and  stretching  their  red-brown  sails 
close  among  the  branches  of  the  spreading  ash.  Just  by  the 
red-roofed  town,  the  tributary  ripple  flows,  with  a  lively  cur- 
rent, into  the  Floss. 

GEORGE  ELIOT  :   The  Mill  on  the  Floss. 

In  the  same  way  study  some  of  the  illustrative  para- 
graphs on  pages  62  to  77. 

i/         Look  over  the  magazines  and  books  at  hand,  and  bring 
to  the  class  passages  in  which  the  principle  is  prominent. 


' 

What  is  climax  ?  How  does  it  aid  in  securing  Em- 
phasis ?  Study  the  following  passages,  and  note  the 
examples  of  climax.  Show  how  they  affect  the  passage. 

1.  Since  concord  was  lost,  friendship  was  lost;  fidelity  was 
lost ;  liberty  was  lost,  — all  was  lost ! 

2.  Here  I  stand  for  impeachment  or  trial !     I  dare  accusa- 
tion !     I  defy  the  honorable  gentleman  !     I  defy  the  govern- 
ment!    I  defy  their  whole  plmjanx  ! 

3.  We   have   complained  ;   we   have   petitioned ;  we   have 
supplicated  ;  we  have  even  prostrated  ourselves  at  the  foot  of 
the  throne,  without  moving  royal  clemency. 

4.  This  makes  the  character  complete.'    Whatsoever  things 
are  false,  whatsoever  things  are  dishonest,  whatsoever  things 
are  unjust,  whatsoever  things  are  of  evil  report  —  if  there  be 
any  vice,  if  there  be  any  infamy,  all  these  things  we  know 
were  blended  in  Barere. 

T.  B.  MACAULAY. 


10.  Bring  to  class  some  lines  of  poetry  in  which  you 
find  distinct  tone-color,  and  say  whether  it  is  effective  in 
heightening  the  impression  which  the  author  meant  to 
give  or  not. 


266  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

11.  What  do  you  understand  by  Emphasis  as  a  quality 
of  style  ?     To  what  part  of    our  nature  does  it  appeal  ? 
How  should  you  distinguish  between  Emphasis  and  Force  ? 
What  in  the  writer  should  inspire  Emphasis  ?     Should  a 
writer  aim  to  secure  Emphasis  mechanically  ?     Why  not  ? 

12.  Can  a  writing  be  clear  and  not  emphatic?     Men- 
tion  some  kinds  of  writing  in  which  Clearness  alone  is 
sought.     Show  why  these  writings  are  not  properly  litera- 
ture. 

13.  If  Emphasis  is  an  appeal  to  the  feelings  or  the 
emotions,  in  what  kind  of  discourse  should  you  expect  to 
find  it  the  prevailing  quality  ?     Select  passages  narrative, 
descriptive,  expository,  and  argumentative,  and  compare 
them  in  the  class  with  reference  to  Emphasis.  • 

14.  In  the  sentences  following  carets  have  been  put 
where  the  bracketed  expression  at  the  end  of  each  sentence 
might  be  placed.     Try  these  expressions  in  the  several 
positions,  and  decide  which  of  them  is  the  better  and  why. 

1.  A  darker  spirit  A  urged  the  new  crusade, —  A  born  not 
of  hope,  but  of  fear,  A  slavish  in  its  nature  AyyTthe  creature  and 
the  tool  of  despotism]. 

2.  With  eleven  ships,  therefore/^  he  sailed  from  Cadiz  on 
the  twenty-ninth  of  June,  1566,  //[leaving  the:  smaller  vessels 
of  his  fleet  to  follow  with  what  s-pe^ed  they  might]. 

3.  I  say  that  the  customs  and  convictions  of  a  democracy 
are  more  dangerous  to  intellectual  liberty  than  those  of  an 
aristocracy,  because    in   matters  of   custom   the  gentry  rule 
only  within  their  own  park-palings,  whereas  the  people*  A  rule 
wherever  the  breezes  blow  A  [when  power  resides  with  them]. 

4.  A  Ampere's  young  wife  was  in  constant  anxiety^  whilst 
the  pair  were  separated  by  the  severity  of  their  fate,  A  [as  to 
the  sufficiency  of  his  diet  and  the  decency  of  his  appearance]. 

5.  Such  people  naturally  look  upon  any  criticism  and  any 
real  freedom  of  speech,KA  when  these  are  positively  healthy 
signs,  [with  distrust  and' suspicion] 


SEA'TEA'CES  :   SHORT  AN 2}   LONG.  267 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

ENTENCES  :  SHORT  AND  LONG. 

100.  Unity  and  Coherence  in  the  Sentence.  —  Sen- 
tences which  contain  only  one  thought,  or  several 
thoughts  which  are  so  related  as  to  be  easily  held  in 
mind  as  one,  have  unity,  and  that  is  a  necessary  quality 
in  all  sentences.  Not  only  must  sentences  have  unity, 
but  they  must  also  give  the  effect  of  unity.  There  are, 
then,  two  things  to  be  considered  :  first,  the  fundamental 
unity  of  the  thought ;  and  second,  the  form  of  expres- 
sion which  will  give  that  effect.  This  has  been  con- 
sidered in  part,  in  chapter  V.,  but  some  further  discussion 
of  the  means  of  securing  unity  is  in  place  here.  Unity 
is  violated  when  a  clause,  phrase,  or  other  expression  is 
"tacked  on  "  after  the -sentence  has  seemingly  come  to 
an  end.  The  introduction  into  the  sentence  anywhere 
of  an  incongruous  expression  of  any  sort  is  destructive 
of  unity.  Sentences  are  too  short  for  unity  when  they 
exclude  closely  related  subordinates,  which  are  therefore 
of  necessity  made  independent  sentences.  Sentences 
are  too  long  for  unity  when  they  include  more  than  can 
easily  be  held  together  as  one  thought  in  the  mind. 
Sentences  of  more  than  one  clause  are  not  unified  when 
the  proper  relation  of  equality  or  subordination  is  not 
clearly  indicated. 


268  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

A  sentence  may  have  unity  without  being  coherent. 
A  sentence  lacks  coherence  when  it  contains  pronouns 
the  antecedents  of  which  are  indefinite,  when  a  relative 
clause  is  separated  from  its  antecedent,  when  the  rela- 
tion of  one  part  to  another  is  for  any  reason  uncertain. 
Incoherence  often  results  in  this  last  case  from  a  care- 
less use  of  connectives.  Participles  are  often  used  inde- 
pendent of  any  word  for  them  to  modify,  with  resulting 
incoherence.  Shifts  of  construction — a  change  from 
the  active  to  the  passive,  from  the  indicative  to  the 
infinitive  or  subjunctive,  from  the  past  to  the  present  — 
are  violations  of  coherence.  The  sentence  must  not  be 
a  series  of  independent  clauses  strung  together  by  con- 
junctions. Subordinate  clauses  must  have  as  definite  a 
relation  in  thought  as  they  have  in  grammatical  structure. 
Each  subordinate  clause  must  have  some  close  relation 
to  the  principal  clause  or  principal  clauses,  and  if  there 
are  two  principal  clauses  or  more  they  must  be  closely 
related.  Otherwise  the  reader  will  be  fatigued  by  the 
attempt  to  find  some  unifying  connection  in  thought 
between  them.  Further,  the  separation  of  related  ideas 
is  also  a  tax  upon  the  attention  and  powers  of  the 
reader,  and  should  therefore  be  avoided.  As  far  as 
possible  we  should  lighten  the  mental  effort  of  the 
reader  by  so  shaping  our  sentences  that  they  will 
indicate  the  connection  from  thought  to  thought. 

101.  Clearness.  —  Clearness  is  a  fundamental  neces- 
sity in  all  writing,  and  unity  and  coherence  are  essential 
for  clearness.  A  writing  in  which  the  thought  is  uni- 


SENTENCES:   SHORT  AND  LONG.  269 

fied  and  is  developed  in  a  logically  and  naturally  cohe- 
rent order  will  ordinarily  be  clear.  In  chapter  XII.  we 
saw  that  a  proper  choice  of  words  is  necessary  for  clear- 
ness, and  we  may  now  remember  further  that  a  proper 
arrangement  of  words  is  equally  important.  Clearness 
requires  that  words  and  phrases  which  are  related  in 
thought  shall  be  near  one  another  in  expression,  and 
that  those  which  are  separate  in  thought  shall  be 
separate,  in  expression. 

102.  Rhetorical  Use  of  Short  and  Long  Sentences. — 
As  we  have  seen,  sentence  length  is  determined  some- 
what by  considerations  of  unity  and  coherence  ;  but  it  is 
also  affected  by  questions  of  rhetorical  effect,  the  phase 
of  the  subject  with  which  we  are  concerned  in  this 
chapter.  In  general  short  sentences  are  more  readily 
understood  than  long,  but  their  too  frequent  recurrence, 
except  for  special  reasons,  makes  the  style  abrupt  and 
jerky,  and  ultimately  wearying.  The  short  sentence  is 
especially  to  be  employed  when  a  number  of  incidents 
and  details  are  to  have  a  cumulative  effect  upon  the 
reader.  Long  sentences  add  dignity  to  a  composition  ; 
but  as  their  meaning  is  less  readily  grasped,  short  sen- 
tences should  occur  at  intervals  to  lessen  the  reader's 
fatigue. 

General  A.  S.  Johnston  at  Shiloh  was  engaged  in  a 
campaign  for  territory  valuable  to  the  confederacy.  He 
had  been  transferred  from  the  East  to  supersede  other 
generals.  His  fame  was  at  stake.  He  had  been  engaged 
upon  one  of  the  most  daring  and  delicate  enterprises 
known  .in  warfare,  a  surprise  of  the  enemy,  to  end  in 


2/0  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

wholesale  slaughter  or  capture  of  the  routed  hosts  on  the 
banks  of  a  bridgeless  river.  The  movement  carried  well 
up  to  a  point.  There  a  Union  division  showed  what 
Johnston  pronounced  stubbornness.  His  men  hesitated, 
and  he  went  personally  with  one  brigade  in  a  charge. 
The  charge  succeeded,  and  he  drew  back  to  bring  up 
another  brigade,  when  a  musket-ball  severed  an  artery  in 
his  leg.  He  made  no  sign,  but  kept  on  giving  orders  and 
watching  events  until  the  spectators  saw  that  he  was 
wounded,  and  as  if  acknowledging  it  to  himself  for  the 
first  time,  said,  "Yes,  and  I  fear  seriously."  He  was 
then  on  the  point  of  death  from  hemorrhage. 
GEORGE  L.  KILMER  :  First  Actions  of  Wounded  Soldiers, 
Popular  Science  Monthly,  June,  1892. 

The  quick  succession  of  short  sentences  here  serves 
to  emphasize  our  understanding  of  the  excitement  and 
mental  stimulus  of  ambitious  purpose  that  saved  Gen- 
eral Johnston  from  yielding  at  once  to  the  sensation  of 
physical  pain. 

There  are  mysteries  about  Number  Five.  I  am  not  going 
to  describe  her  personally.  Whether  she  belongs  naturally 
among  the  bright  young  people,  or  in  the  company  of  the 
maturer  persons,  who  have  had  a  good  deal  of  experience 
of  the  world,  and  have  reached  the  wisdom  of  the  riper 
decades  without  losing  the  graces  of  the  earlier  ones,  it 
would  be  hard  to  say.  The  men  and  women,  young  and 
old,  who  throng  about  her,  forget  their  own  ages.  "  There 
is  no  such  thing  as  time  in  her  presence,"  said  the  Professor, 
the  other  day,  in  speaking  of  her.  Whether  the  Professor 
is  in  love  with  her  or  not  is  more  than  I  can  say,  but  I  am 
sure  that  he  goes  to  her  for  literary  sympathy  and  counsel, 
just  as  I  do.  The  reader  may  remember  what  Number 
Five  said  about  the  possibility  of  her  getting  a  sprained 
ankle,  and  her  asking  the  young  Doctor  whether  he  felt 
equal  to  taking  charge  of  her  if  she  did.  I  would  not  for 


SM&TENCES:  SHORT  AND  LONG.  2/1 

the  world  insinuate  that  he  wishes  she  would  slip  and 
twist  her  foot  a  little,  —  just  a  little,  you  know,  but  so 
that  it  would  have  to  be  laid  on  a  pillow  in  a  chair,  and 
inspected,  and  bandaged,  and  delicately  manipulated. 
There  was  a  banana-skin  which  she  might  naturally  have 
trodden  on,  in  her  way  to  the  tea-table.  Nobody  can  sup- 
pose it  was  there  except  by  the  most  innocent  of  accidents. 
There  are  people  who  will  suspect  everybody.  The  idea  of 
the  Doctor's  putting  that  banana-skin  there  !  People  love  to 
talk  in  that  silly  way  about  doctors. 

O.  W.  HOLMES  :    Over  the  Teacups. 

The  first  two  sentences  of  this  are  short  in  order  that 
the  form  itself  may  aid  the  subject-matter  in  arousing 
interest.  They  stimulate  the  attention,  which  is  then 
prepared  to  follow  more  closely  the  description  that 
comes  after.  The  short  sentences  with  which  the  para- 
graph closes  have  that  form  in  order  that  the  abruptness 
of  the  change  of  thought  may  so  be  made  more  striking 
and  full  of  a  lively  interest.  As  the  short  sentence  is 
also  the  sentence  of  ordinary  talk,  it  helps  here  to  give 
the  tone  of  sprightliness. 

The  great  subject  of  the  reestablishment  of  civil  gov- 
ernment in  the  Southern  States  was  then  taken  up.  Mr. 
Stanton  had,  a  few  days  before,  drawn  up  a  project  for  an 
executive  ordinance  for  the  preservation  of  order  and  the 
rehabilitation  of  legal  processes  in  the  States  lately  in 
rebellion.  The  President,  using  this  sketch  as  his  text, 
not  adopting  it  as  a  whole,  but  saying  that  it  was  substan- 
tially the  result  of  frequent  discussions  in  the  cabinet, 
spoke  at  some  length  on  the  question  of  reconstruction, 
than  which  none  more  important  could  ever  engage  the 
attention  of  the  government.  It  was  providential,  he 
thought,  that  this  matter  should  have  arisen  at  a  time  when 


2/2  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

it  could  be  considered  so  far  as  the  executive  was  con- 
cerned, without  interference  by  Congress.  If  they  were 
wise  and  discreet,  they  should  reanimate  the  States  and 
get  their  governments  to  successful  operation,  with  order 
prevailing  and  the  Union  reestablished  before  Congress 
came  together  in  December. 

NICOLAY  and  HAY  :  Life  of  Lincoln. 

This  paragraph  illustrates  admirably  the  dignity  and 
strength  that  come  from  the  use  of  long  sentences. 
There  is  the  calm  reserve  of  power,  and  each  sentence 
from  period  to  period  is  full  and  well-rounded,  as  of  a 
mind  richly  stored.  Re-write  the  paragraph  in  shorter 
sentences,  retaining  the  phraseology  so  far  as  possible, 
and  note  what  qualities  are  lost  in  the  re-writing. 

For  common  gifts,  necessity  makes  pertinences  and 
beauty  every  day,  and  one  is  glad  when  an  imperative 
leaves  him  no  option,  since  if  the  man  at  the  door  have  no 
shoes,  you  have  not  to  consider  whether  you  could  procure 
him  a  paint-box.  And  as  it  is  always  pleasing  to  see  a 
man  eat  bread,  or  drink  water,  in  the  house  or  out  of  doors, 
so  it  is  always  a  great  satisfaction  to  supply  these  first 
wants.  Necessity  does  everything  well.  In  our  condition 
of  universal  dependence,  it  seems  heroic  to  let  the  petitioner 
be  the  judge  of  his  necessity,  and  to  give  all  that  is  asked, 
though  at  great  inconvenience.  If  it  be  a  fantastic  desire, 
it  is  better  to  leave  to  others  the  office  of  punishing  him. 
I  can  think  of  many  parts  I  should  prefer  playing  to  that 
of  the  Furies.  Next  to  things  of  necessity,  the  rule  for  a 
gift,  which  one  of  my  friends  prescribed,  is  that  we  might 
convey  to  some  person  that  which  properly  belonged  to 
his  character,  and  was  easily  associated  with  him  in 
thought.  But  our  tokens  of  compliment  and  love  are  for  the 
most  part  barbarous.  Rings  and  other  jewels  are  not  gifts, 
but  apologies  for  gifts.  The  only  gift  is  a  portion  of  thyself. 


SENTENCES :   SHORT  AND  LONG.  273 

T/.<o:i  must  bleed  for  me.  Therefore  the  poet  brings  his 
poem ;  the  shepherd,  his  lamb ;  the  farmer,  corn ;  the 
miner,  a  gem ;  the  sailor,  coral  and  shells  ;  the  painter, 
hi§  picture  ;  the  girl,  a  handkerchief  of  her  own  sewing. 
This  is  right  and  pleasing,  for  it  restores  society  in  so  far 
to  its  primary  basis,  when  a  man's  biography  is  conveyed 
in  his  gift,  and  every  man's  wealth  is  an  index  of  his 

R.  W.  EMERSON  :   Gifts. 

Here  the  short  sentences  which  have  been  printed  in 
italics  serve  to  call  attention  to  a  change  in  thought. 
Further,  as  the  change  is  made  more  pronounced  and 
the  new  thought  becomes  more  emphatic,  the  sentences 
become  shorter. 

103.  Oral  Exercise. —  Account    for    the    use    of    the 
short  sentences  in  the  paragraphs  quoted  from  page  62 
to  page  78,  remembering  that  : 

S/wi  t  sentences  used  in  connection  with  long  sentences 
serve  to  arrest  the  attention,  to  summarise  and  emphasize 
some  preceding  part  of  the  paragraph,  to  indicate  a  change 
of  .thought,  and  to  announce  what  is  to  follow. 

A  series  of  successive  short  sentences  may  indicate 
Jiurry,  may  produce  the  effect  of  great  number  and  quan- 
tity, may  give  directness  and  vigor  to  the  tJwught. 

104.  Written   Exercise.— Re-write  the  following  para- 
graph almost  entirely  in  short  sentences  in  order  to  pro- 
duce  the    effect    of    hurry  and    excitement    which    the 
incident  demands. 

But  I  saw  no  farther,  though  Pavannes  did,  and  mur- 
mured bitterly,  "  We  may  say  our  prayers,  we  Huguenots, 


2/4  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

for  that  is  our  death-warrant,  and  to-morrow  night  there 
will  not  be  one  left  in  Paris,  lad.  Guise  has  his  father's 
death  to  avenge,  and  these  cursed  Parisians  will  do  his 
bidding  like  the  wolves  they  are  !  The  BarOn  de  Rosny 
warned  us  of  this,  word  for  word  ;  and  I  would  to  Heaven 
I  had  taken  his  advice  !  " 

"Stay!"  I  cried  —  he  was  going  too  fast  for  me  — 
"  stay  1  "  His  monstrous  conception,  though  it  marched 
some  way  with  my  own  suspicions,  outran  them  far,  for 
I  saw  no  sufficient  grounds  for  it.  "  The  King  —  the 
King  would  not  permit  such  a  thing,  M.  de  Pavannes," 
I  argued. 

"  Boy,  you  are  blind  !  "  he  rejoined  impatiently,  for 
now  he  saw  all  and  I  nothing.  "  Yonder  was  the  Duke 
of  Anjou's  captain  —  Monsieur's  officer,  the  follower  of 
France's  brother,  mark  you,  and  he  obeyed  the  Duke's 
ring  in  giving  you  passage  when  you  showed  it  to  him. 
The  Duke  has  a  free  hand  to-night,  and  he  hates  us,  and 
that,  perhaps,  explains  why  we  are  not  to  cross  the  river. 
The  King  indeed  !  The  King  has  undone  us,  and  he  has 
sold  us,  I  am  confident,  to  his  brother  and  the  Guises  — 
'  Va  chasser  I  'Idole  ' '  —  for  the  second  time  I  heard  the 
quaint  phrase,  which  I  learned  afterwards  was  an  anagram 
of  the  King's  name,  Charles  of  Valois,  used  by  the 
Protestants  as  a  password  — "'  Va  chasser  Pldok'1  has 
betrayed  us.  I  remember  the  very  words  he  used  to  the 
Admiral,  *  Now  we  have  got  you  here  we  shall  not  let 
you  go  so  easily  ! '  I  think  that  he  is  a  traitor,  a  wretched 
traitor." 

105.  Written  Exercise In    the    following   passage 

the  long  sentences  aid  in  giving  the  effect  of  climax  to 
the  paragraph.  The  mutipli cation  of  detail  in  them, 
grouping  Napoleon's  various  activities  in  one  compre- 
hensive statement,  adds  to  this  effect.  Such  grouping 
of  details  in  one  long  sentence  is  more  impressive  than 


SENTENCES  :   SHORT  AND   LONG.          275 

the  separate  statement  of  them  in  short  sentences. 
Re-write  the  paragraph,  changing  the  two  concluding 
sentences  into  several  short  ones,  and  tell  what  differ- 
ence it  makes  in  the  effect. 


Such  seems  to  us  to  have  been  the  distinction,  or 
characteristic  modification  of  his  love  of  fame.  It  was  a 
diseased  passion  for  a  kind  of  admiration,  which,  from  the 
principles  of  our  nature,  cannot  be  enduring,  and  which 
demands  for  its  support  perpetual  and  more  stimulating 
novelty.  Mere  esteem  he  would  have  scorned.  Calm 
admiration,  though  universal  and  enduring,  would  have 
been  insipid.  He  wanted  to  electrify  and  overwhelm. 
He  lived  for  effect.  The  world  was  his  theatre,  and  he 
cared  little  what  part  he  played,  if  he  might  walk  the  sole 
hero  on  the  stage,  and  call  forth  bursts  of  applause,  which 
would  silence  all  other  fame.  In  war  the  triumphs  which 
he  coveted  were  those  in  which  he  seemed  to  sweep  away 
his  foes  like  a  whirlwind ;  and  the  immense  and  unpar- 
alleled sacrifices  of  his  own  soldiers,  in  the  rapid  marches 
and  daring  assaults  to  which  he  owed  his  victories,  in  no 
degree  diminished  their  worth  to  the  victor.  In  peace, 
he  delighted  to  hurry  through  his  dominions ;  to  multiply 
himself  by  his  rapid  movements  ;  to  gather  at  a  glance  the 
capacities  of  improvement  which  every  important  place 
possessed ;  to  suggest  plans  which  would  startle  by  their 
originality  and  vastness ;  to  project  in  an  instant,  works 
which  a  life  could  not  accomplish,  and  to  leave  behind 
the  impression  of  a  superhuman  energy. 

WILLIAM  E.  CHANNING  :  Napoleon  Bonaparte. 

106.  Written   Exercise Long   sentences   give    the 

tone  of  seriousness  and  dignity  to  a  composition  as  in 
the  foregoing  selections.     The  sense  of  massiveness  and 


276  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

strength  can  be  imparted  only  through  the  use  of  long 
sentences,  and  in  them  of  necessity  complexity  of  thought 
mainly  finds  expression.  Re-write  the  following  para- 
graph in  shorter  sentences,  compare  with  the  original, 
and  state  your  conclusions. 

As  there  were  only  six  elders  they  could  sit  in  state, 
besides  leaving  space  for  any  penitents  who  came  to  con- 
fess their  sins  and  receive  absolution,  or  some  catechumen 
who  wished  to  be  admitted  to  the  Sacrament.  Carmichael 
used  to  say  that  a  meeting  of  Session  affected  his  imagina- 
tion, and  would  have  made  an  interior  for  Rembrandt. 
On  one  side  of  the  table  sat  the  men  who  represented  the 
piety  of  the  district,  and  were  supposed  to  be  "far  ben  " 
in  the  divine  fellowship,  and  on  the  other  some  young 
girl  in  her  loneliness,  who  wrung  her  handkerchief  in 
[  terror  of  this  dreaded  spiritual  court,  and  hoped  within 
her  heart  that  no  elder  would  ask  her  "  effectual  calling," 
from  the  Shorter  Catechism ;  while  the  little  lamp,  hang- 
ing from  the  ceiling  and  swinging  gently  in  the  wind  that 
I  had  free  access  from  every  airt,  cast  a  fitful  light  on  the 
fresh,  'tearful  face  of  the  girl  and  the  hard,  weatherbeaten 
countenances  of  the  elders,  composed  into  a  serious  grav- 
^^  I  ity  not  untouched  by  tenderness.  They  were  little  else 
than  laboring  men,  but  no  one  was  elected  to  that  court 
unless  he  had  given  pledge  of  godliness,  and  they  bore 
themselves  as  men  who  had  the  charge  of  souls. 

IAN  MACLAREN  :  Beside  the  Bonnie  Brier  Bush. 


EXERCISES. 


i .  What  do  you  understand  by  Unity  in  the  sentence  ? 
By  Coherence  ?  To  what  qualities  of  style  does  the  arrange- 
ment of  words  in  logical  and  connected  sequence  of 
thought  contribute  ? 


SENTENCES  :   SHORT  AND  LONG.  M      2/7 

2.  What  are  the  uses  of  the  short  sentence  ?    should 
you  find  short  or  long  sentences  in  a  nervous,  animated 
style  ?    should  you  expect  an  orator,  speaking  under  the 
stress  of  strong  emotion,  to  use  long  or  short  sentences  ? 
Enumerate  the  uses  of  the  long  sentence.  ^^y\J^\ 

3.  In  argumentation  should  you  expect  to  fthd  short  or 
long  sentences  the  more  frequent  ?     Why  ?     Where  and 
for  what  uses  should   you  find   sentences   of  a   different 
length  ? 

4.  Show  the  uses  of  the  long  sentences  in  the  para- 
graphs from  page  62  to  page  81. 

5.  Should  you  expect  to  find  short  or  long  sentences 
predominant  in   writing  having  the   quality  of  emotional 
force  in  high  degree  ?  in  a  writing  displaying  high  imagi- 
native qualities  ?     Illustrate  from  the  selections  on  pages 
72,  80,  123,  and  211. 

6.  On  the  basis  of  the  answers  you  would  give  to  the 
questions  following,  write  a  composition   on   each  one  of 
these  subjects,  and  come  to  class  prepared  to   justify  your 
use  of  long  and  short  sentences. 

1.  Edmund  Burke.     Were  his  mental  qualities   native  or 
the  product  of  culture  ?     What  was  his  relation  to  the  policy 
of  the  government  under  Lord  North,  and  what  in  his  charac- 
ter led  him  to  this  attitude?     What  other  course  having  to 
do  with  England's  foreign  relations  did  he  advocate  unsuc- 
cessfully, and  with  what  power  did  he  conduct  the  case? 
What  striking  characteristics  do  you  find  in  his  style  ?     Was 
it  simple,  clear,  ornate,  terse,  impassioned,  dignified,  elabo- 
rate, abrupt,  rhythmical,  forceful,  weak,  emotional,  oratorical, 
or   intellectual?     (References:    Cambridge   literature   series 
No.  2,  pp.  x.,  xi.,  xii.,  xix.-xxv.,  xxvii.-xxx.,  28-50  and  131. 
Taine's  "English  Literature,"  Book  III.,  Chapter  iii.,  Sec- 
tion 8,  conclusion.) 

2.  A   Night   Ride.     If  you  were   a  prisoner  of  war   con- 
fined in  a  tent  in  camp,  and  knew  that  at  night  a  friend  would 
place  a  horse  at  a  short  distance  from  you  in  the  hope  that 
you  might  reach  it  and  escape,  what  should  you  do?     And 
what,  if  other  forces  of  the  enemy  were  thick  in  the  country 
about?     And  what,  if  it  were  twenty  miles  to  any  place  of 
safety?     And  if  the  country  were  very  rough,  and  covered 
with   wooded  water-courses?    And  what,  if  you  heard   the 


2/8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

clatter  of  hoofs  in  front  of  you?  And  what,  if  you  knew  that 
pursuers  were  close  behind'?  And  should  you,  nevertheless, 
escape,  and  how? 

7.  Study  the  following  sentences  with  reference  to  the 
choice,  number,  and  arrangement  of  words.  Make  any 
corrections  you  think  necessary,  and  be  prepared  to  give 
reasons  for  the  changes. 

1.  We   have  received   a  basket  of  fine   grapes  from  our 
friend  W.,  for  which  he  will  please  accept  our  thanks,  some 
of  which  are  nearly  two  inches  in  diameter. 

2.  Pedal  teguments  artistically  illuminated  and  lubricated 
for  the  infinitesimal  remuneration  of  five  cents. 

3.  He  enjoyed  the  universal  esteem  of  all  men. 

4.  The  hotel's  night  watchman  enables   gentlemen  to  be 
called  at  any  time,  and  adds  greatly  to  the  comfort  and  secu- 
rity of  all. 

5.  He   promised   his  father    he   would    never   forget    his 
advice. 

6.  On  arriving  at  the  station,  he  stepped  from  the  train, 
looked  about  for  a  cab,  hired  one,  got  into  it,  told  the  driver 
to  move  on,  and  reached  his  house  without  accident. 

7.  Madame    L gave  a  vocal   recital   last   evening   at 

Steinert  Hall,  assisted  by  an  orchestra,  which  performed  sev- 
eral  high-class  selections,   and   considerably   enhanced    the 
evening's  proceedings. 

8.  To  be  disposed  of,  a  mail  phaeton,  property  of  a  gentle- 
man with  a  movable  head-piece  as  good  as  new. 

9.  Annual  sale  now  on.     Don't  go  elsewhere  to  be  cheated 
—  come  in  here. 

10.  She  had  not  yet  listened  patiently  to  his  heart-beats, 
but  only  felt  that  her  own  was  beating  violently. 

n.    The  annual  anniversary  of  the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims, 
celebrated  yearly,  took  place  a  few  days  since. 

12.  It  looks  as  if  ex-President  Harrison  might  be  aspiring 
to  anticipate  the  Supreme  Court  on  the  absorbing  question  as 
to  applicability  of  the  constitution  to  our  new  possessions. 

13.  The  secretary  of  the  navy  dismissed  from  the  naval 
academy  last  week,  on  recommendation  of  the  superintend- 
ent, a  cadet  found  guilty  of  "gouging,"  which  is  the  slang 
for  dishonesty  in  work,  in  this  case  the  copying  as  his  own 
a  theme  written  by  another  cadet,  and  of  falsehood. 

14.  A  brazen  statue  of  Justice  stood  in  the  public  square, 
once  in  an  ancient  city,  whose  name  I  no  longer  remember, 
raised  aloft  on  a  column,  upholding  the  scales  in  its  left  hand, 
and  in  its  right  a  sword. 


'ENTENCES :   SHORT  AND  LONG.  2/9 


8.  Study  the  following  selections,  and   criticise  them 
with  reference  to  unity  and  coherence.      Re-write   each, 
and  show  wherein  you  have  improved  it  in  these  respects. 

1.  This  is  a  most  charming  chapter  of  the  story,  which  is 
full  of  pleasant  incidents,_and_wjiich  the  reader  will  find  well 
worth  perusal. 

2.  The  place  was  approached  through  a  pasture-field,— 
we  had  found  it  by  mere  accident,  —  and  where  the  peninsula 
joined  the  field  (we  had  to  climb  a  fence  just  there),  there  was 
a  cluster  of  chestnut  arid  hickory  trees. 

3.  We  suggest  very  seriously  and  earnestly  that  a  depart- 
ment of  human  health,  with  special  attention  to  the  stamping 
out  of  dangerous  national  diseases,  like  consumption,  should 
receive  immediate  government  attention. 

4.  Our  esteemed  contemporary  is  looking  for  some  western 
member  of  the  legislature  who  will  rise  to  the  opportunity, 
and    try  to  make  a  name  for  himself   in  following  up  the 
Record's  suggestion  that  nobody  can  make  a  greater  hit  on 
Beacon  Hill  than  to  support  by  practical  action  the  governor's 
vigorous  call  for  real  economy. 

5.  The  most  disquieting  part  of   the  report  of  the  state 
board  of  health  is  that  which  shows  that  during  the  year  there 
has  been  an  unusual  increase  of  adulteration  of  jellies,  jams, 
etc.,  mostly  by  the  substitution  of  cheaper  kinds  of  fruit,  such 
as  the  refuse  portion  of  apples,  to  which  is  added  glucose  in- 
stead of  cane  sugar,  together  with  aniline  dyes  to  imitate  the 
color  of  natural  fruit. 

9.  Criticise  the  following  passages  with  reference  to 
clearness.      Study  them  carefully,   and  re-write  them  so 
that  they  will  be  clear. 

1.  Vanity  is  the  next  danger  to  our  democracy,  according 
to  Professor  Griggs,  who  deftly  denounced  imperialism  with- 
out mentioning  it  by  saying  that  it  was  to  answer  a  charge  of 
lack  of  courage  that  we  selected  an  enemy  and  conquered 
him,  and  to  prove  ourselves  capable  of  world  power  that  we 
have  gone  around  the  world  and  assumed  foolish  responsi- 
bilities, leaving  behind   the  quiet  paths  of  self-development 
that  were  leading  us  to  unparalleled  power  and  glory  by  our 
own  paths,  when  we  were  solving  the  intellectual  problems 
of  civilization. 

2.  A  writer  in  a  rural  exchange  says  that  he  saw  "  two  men 
starting  for  town  with  a  gray  horse  and  sleigh  seated  upon 
a  box  containing  holes  that  had  been  made  with  a  two-inch 
auger  going  after  a  pig." 


280  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


3.  Last  evening  a  runaway  horse  owned  by  John  Welch 
caused   a  good   deal   of   excitement.      He   started   near  the 
Brighton   station   and   ran  down  Western  Avenue.      When 
near  the  cordage  works  he  ran  into  a  team  driven  by  Joseph 
Colby.     He  was  thrown  violently  to  the  ground  and  received 
severe  cuts  about  the  head.     A  doctor  was  called  who  or- 
dered his  removal  to  his  Newton  home. 

4.  The  young  man  did  not  want  natural  talents  ;  but  the 
father  of  him  was  a  coxcomb,   who  affected    being  a  fine 
gentleman  so  unmercifully  that  he  could  not  endure  in  his 
sight,  or  the  frequent  mention  of,  one  who  was  his  son,  grow- 
ing into  manhood  and  thrusting  him  out  of  the  gay  world. 

5.  The  critical   position  of   the  new  free  .state,  which  is 
being  founded  in  Africa  by  the  king  of  the  Belgians,  is  owing 
to  its  present  jurisdiction  on  the  Congo,  being  an  island,  and 
to  the  rights  it  possesses  on  the  sea  coasts  to  the  north  of  the 
Congo  being  coveted  by  France. 

6.  In  order  further  to  advertise  my  business,  I  will  send 
my  new  pipe  organ  to  any  one  sending  me  $75,  provided  I 
receive  fifty  names,  the  same  as  given  away  at  the  concert  of 
December  the  3d. 

7.  An  Alabama  paper,  speaking  of  Florida,  says  :  "There1 
are  also  numerous  small  lakes  of  pure  water,,  filled  with  fish, 
some  of  which  are  only  a  few  rods  in  extent,  while  others  are 
from  two  to  ten  miles  long." 

8.  We  are  becoming  altogether  too  horse  showy.     I   am 
afraid  that  with   these   small   summer   resort  collections  of 
favored  horseflesh,  the  big,  crushing  Madison  Square  Garden 
affair  will   have   its  teeth  drawn,  and  there  will  be  no  bite 
to  it.      There  is  always  danger  of  making  good  things  too 
common. 


10.  Why  do  you  think  it  is  advisable  to  employ  sen- 
tences of  varying  lengths  in  your  writing  ?     Do  you  think 
that  you  should  weary  of  a  succession  of  long  or  short 
sentences  the  more  quickly  ? 

1 1 .  Are  topic  sentences  in  paragraphs  usually  short  or 
long,  and  why  ? 

12.  Do  short  or  long  sentences  contribute  the  more  to 
regular  and  logical  sequence  of  thought  ?     Why  ?     Which 
give  the  more  abrupt  and  which  the  more  regularly  flow- 
ing rhythmic   effect?      Why?      In  regard   to   this   make 
comparison  of  the  paragraphs  on  pages  of  2 1 1  and  212. 


SENTENCES.  281 


CHAPTER    XV. 

SENTENCES  I  LOOSE,  PERIODIC,  AND  BALANCED. 

107.  Kinds  of  Sentences  and  Their  Use.  —  Sentences 
are  distinguished  as  short  or  long,  and  as  .loose,  bal- 
anced, or  periodic.  Short  sentences  are  used  for  emo- 
tional emphasis ;  long  sentences,  for  thought  emphasis. 
A  loose  sentence  is  one  which  may  be  terminated  at  one 
or  more  places  before  the  conclusion  and  still  make 
sense.  The  periodic  sentence,  on  the  contrary,  keeps 
the  meaning  in  suspense  until  the  end,  and  would  not 
give  the  complete  meaning  if  terminated  earlier.  By  its 
structure,  then,  the  periodic  sentence,  unless  short,  has 
the  effect  of  climax,  and  so  gives  emphasis.  The  loose 
sentence,  which  is  the  normal  sentence  of  ordinary  con- 
versation, is  to  be  employed  when  emphasis  in  structure 
is  not  especially  required.  In  a  measure  the  loose  sen- 
tence is  equivalent  to  a  series  of  short  sentences  ;  its 
emphasis  is  the  emphasis  of  emotion.  In  rare  instances 
the  periodic  sentence  may  also  have  the  emphasis  of 
emotion  when  the  emphasis  is  that  of  mass,  as  in  the 
piling  up  of  subjects  in  apposition  in  sentence  9  on 
page  96.  In  the  balanced  sentence  the  emphasis  is 
that  of  contrast. 


282 


COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 


The    following    are    examples    of    loose  and  periodic 
sentences  :  — 


LOOSE. 

1 .  You  ordered  him  to  death 

while  the  sacred  words, 
"  I  am  a  Roman  citi- 
zen," were  on  his  lips. 

2.  I  shall  not  vote  for  this 

measure,  unless  it  is 
clearly  constitutional. 

3.  He  feared  when  there  was 

no  danger,  and  he  wept 
when  there  was  no  sor- 
row. 

4.  Greene    was    the    ablest 

commander  in  the  revo- 
lutionary war,  next  to 
Washington. 


PERIODIC. 

While  the  sacred  words, 
"  I  am  a  Roman  citi- 
zen," were  on  his  lips, 
you  ordered  him  to 
death. 

Unless  this  measure  is 
clearly  constitutional,  I 
shall  not  vote  for  it. 

When  there  was  no 
danger  he  feared,  and 
when  there  was  no  sor- 
row he  wept. 

Next  to  Washington, 
Greene  was  the  ablest 
commander  in  the  rev- 
olutionary war. 


The  following  from  Johnson's  reply  to  Lord  Chester- 
field is  a  balanced  sentence  :  — 

The  notice  which  you  have  been  pleased  to  take  of  my 
labors  had  it  been  earlier,  had  been  kindly  ;  but  it  has 
been  delayed  till  I  am  indifferent  and  cannot  enjoy  it ; 
till  I  am  solitary  and  cannot  impart  it ;  till  I  am  known 
and  do  not  want  it. 

The  second  clause  here  is  nearly  equal  to  the  first  in 
length,  weight,  and  structure.  Unlikeness  in  meaning 
and  the  likeness  in  other  respects  serve  to  give  it  em- 
phasis. The  last  three  clauses  are  an  example  of  par- 
allelism, in  which  the  emphasis  is  that  of  mass,  as  in 
the  employment  of  a  series  of  terms  in  apposition. 


SENTENCES.  283 

108.  The  Normal  English  Sentence.  —  The  loose  sen- 
tence is  the  natural  sentence  of  ordinary  English  prose. 
Short  sentences  can  hardly  be  called  distinctly  loose  or 
distinctly  periodic,  since  in  the  short  sentence  we  can- 
not have  the  sense  of  suspended  meaning  in  any  appre- 
ciable degree  ;  and  within  the  confines  of  one  or  two  lines 
it  is  not  ordinarily  possible  to  provide  for  more  than 
one  place  where  the  meaning  may  end.  The  balanced 
sentence  may  consist  of  two  short  clauses,  and  these 
two  may  together  constitute  a  short  sentence.  In  the 
selection  that  follows  the  first  sentence  is  periodic  ;  and 
it  will  be  observed  that  it  is  not  arranged  in  the  natural 
order,  in  which  order  the  first  clause  would  follow  the 
word  "inquire."  This  is  characteristic  of  the  periodic 
sentence.  It  is  almost  always  artificial,  and  the  employ- 
ment of  it  to  any  great  degree  gives  the  writer's  style 
the  air  of  artificiality.  This  is  especially  true  when 
the  sentence  is  both  long  and  periodic,  since  the  longer 
a  periodic  sentence  is  the  greater  is  the  suspense.  The 
balanced  sentence  is  also  a  highly  artificial  'form,  and 
should  be  employed  only  for  the  purpose  of  emphasizing 
contrasting  or  parallel  ideas. 

What  Parkman  might  have  done,  had  he  been  able  to 
command  the  full  use  of  his  mind,  it  is  useless  to  inquire ; 
but  what  he  did  under  the  constraint  of  "  repressed  ac- 
tivity," by  absolute  control  of  an  eager  and  impulsive 
temperament,  and  by  the  discipline  of  himself,  is  more 
remarkable  as  an  example  of  what  the  human  will  can 
accomplish  when  controlled  for  the  highest  ends,  than  his 
greatness  as  -a  historian.  Compelled  to  reserve  all  his 


284  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

strength  for  his  work,  to  taste  of  the  pleasures  of  life  as 
a  forbidden  luxury,  to  do  constantly  what  to  one  of  his 
temperament  was  the  most  odious  thing  to  him,  and  com- 
pletely to  remake  himself  in  order  to  accomplish  what  he 
aimed  to  do,  his  fifty  years  of  struggle  with  an  undertaking 
which  only  a  well  man  would  have  dared  to  enter  upon, 
is  one  of  the  boldest,  most  unflinching,  and  most  heroic 
achievements  on  record  in  the  annals  of  literature.  If 
the  story  of  his  life  should  be  written  as  he  lived  it,  as  the 
mind  rose  above  and  compelled  the  body,  it  will  make  one 
of  the  most  thrilling  narratives  of  heroic  effort  that  has 
ever  been  given  to  the  world. 

JULIUS  H.  WARD  :    Francis  Park-man  and  His    Work. 
The  Forum,  December,  1893. 

Written  Exercise.  —  In  the  use  of  the  periodic  sen- 
tence here  it  will  be  observed  that  the  thought  of  the 
sentence  is  delayed  in  order  that,  by  the  previous  pres- 
entation of  the  accompanying  circumstances,  it  may  have 
added  weight  and  dignity.  Further,  expectation  is 
aroused  by  this  delay,  and  each  additional  phrase  or 
clause  introduced  before  the  conclusion  to  which  it  leads 
heightens  that  expectation.  Note  that  suspense  in  a 
periodic  sentence  is  secured  by  introducing  phrases,— 
prepositional,  participial,  or  infinitive,  —  and  clauses, 
either  adjective  or  adverbial.  Phrases  introduced  for 
the  purpose  of  securing  suspense  are  usually  participial. 
Single  words  demanding  a  correlative  further  along  in 
the  sentence,  such  words  as  neither,  more,  so,  whether, 
or  any  expression  requiring  something  to  complete  it, 
produce  suspense. 

Re-write  the  paragraph  in  loose  sentences,  and  note 


SENTENCES.  285 

whether  it  is  tamer,  less  filled  with  power  and  dignity, 
than  before. 

i.  Again,  when  we  remember  that  Florence,  Pisa, 
Siena,  Perugia,  are  all  practically  in  Tuscany,  and  that 
Florence  alone  has  really  given  to  the  world  Dante  and 
Boccaccio,  Galileo  and  Savonarola,  Cimabue  and  Giotto, 
Botticelli  and  Fra  Angelico,  Donatello  and  Ghiberti, 
Michael  Angelo  and  Raffael,  Leonardo  da  Vinci  and 
Machiavelli  and  Alfieri,  and  a  host  of  other  almost  equally 
great  names,  it  will  be  obvious  to  every  one  that  the  prob- 
lem of  the  origin  of  this  Tuscan  nationality  must  be  one 
that  profoundly  interests  the  whole  world.  2.  Nay,  more, 
we  must  remember,  too,  that  Etruria  has  other  and  earlier 
claims  than  these ;  that  it  spreads  up  to  the  very  walls  of 
Rome  ;  that  the  Etruscan  element  in  Rome  itself  was  im- 
mensely strong ;  that  the  Roman  religion  owed,  confess- 
edly, much  to  Etruscan  ideas;  that  Latin  Christianity,  the 
Christianity  .of  all  the  western  world,  took  its  shape  in 
semi- Etruscan  Rome ;  that  the  Roman  empire  was  largely 
modelled  by  the  Etruscan  Maecenas ;  that  the  Italian 
Renaissance  was  largely  influenced  by  the  Florentine  Med- 
ici ;  that  Leo  the  Tenth  was  himself  a  member  of  that 
great  house ;  and  that  the  artists  whom  he  summoned  to 
the  metropolis  to  erect  St.  Peter's  and  to  beautify  the 
Vatican  were,  almost  all  of  them,  Florentines  by  birth, 
training,  or  domicile. 

GRANT    ALLEN  :    A    Persistent   Nationality.       North 
American  Review,  May,  i88g. 

Written  Exercise.  —  In  this  it  will  be  noticed  that  the 
first  sentence  is  of  the  periodic  form,  and  that  the  sec- 
ond is  loose  in  structure.  In  the  one  the  reasons  for 
the  principal  statement  must  be  given  before  that  can 
be  arrived  at,  and  in  the  other  the  clauses  that  follow 
the  first  independent  clause  are  but  details  of  that  clause 


286  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

and  support  it,  not  as  reasons  for  it,  but  as  illustrations ; 
they  do  not  lead  up  to  it  through  the  sequence  of  cause 
and  effect,  as  is  the  case  in  the  first  sentence.  In  that 
we  are  made  ready  to  accept  the  truth  of  the  statement 
before  it  is  made,  while  in  this,  its  general  truth  not 
being  in  question,  the  addition  of  details  serves  to  make 
it  more  impressive.  Re-write  the  paragraph,  putting 
each  sentence  in  the  other  form,  and  compare. 

i.  The  increasing  wealth  and  prosperity  of  the  towns 
was  a  constant  source  of  envy  to  the  barons,  who,  we  are 
told,  "  plundered  ftfc&ni  on  every  occasion  without  mercy 
or  remorse."  2.  Therefore,  in  order  to  maintain  their  ex- 
istence and  the  freedom 'and  wealth  they  had  acquired, 
the  towns  were  forced  to  assume  open  hostility  to  the 
barons.  3.  As  a  means  of  swelling  their  numbers  and 
sustaining  themselves  in  the  struggle,  the_burgesses  made 
the  towns  a  place  of  refuge  and  safety  for  all  who  should 
come  to  reside  within  their  walls.  4.  And  as  an  addi- 
tional  inducement  they  conferred  the  right  ^pf  citizenship 
upon  all  who  remained  there  one  year,  even  though  they 
were  runaway  serfs  from  the  neighboring  baron's  estate. 
5.  Thus  the  towns  not  only  protected  the  property  and 
promoted  the  progress  of  the  burgesses,  but  they  offered 
protection  and  freedom  to  all  who  would  flee  thither  from 
the  clutches  of  their  feudal  masters.  6.  By  such  means 
naturally  attracted  to  themfthe  most  energetic  and 
characterful  portion  of  the  peopled  7 .  With  this  opportu- 
nity for  improvement  and  freedom  constantly  held  out  to 
even  serfs  of  husbandry,  the  barons  were  gradually  com- 
pelled to  provide  better  conditions,  grant  more  privileges 
and  some  freedom,  in  order  to  prevent  them  from  fleeing 
to  the  towns.  8.  And  by  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth 
centuiy,  we  are  told,  the  villeins  of  England  had  largely 
become  hired  laborers.  9.  In  other  words,  the  laborers 
had  developed  from  serfs  (slaves)  into  wage  receivers. 

GEORGE  GUNTON  :  Evolution  of  the  Wages  System. 


SENTENCES.  287 

Written  Exercise.  —  In  this  the  first  sentence  is  in 
the  loose  form  because  it  contains  a  general  state- 
ment of  such  character  that  it  does  not  require  proof, 
but  illustration.  In  sentences  two  and  t^iree,  on  the 
contrary,  the  logical  force  of  the  statement  is  increased 
by  making  it  follow  the  presentation  of  reasons  for 
it.  Sentence  four  includes  both  methods.  The  fifth 
sentence  is  a  balanced  sentence ;  and  in  that  form 
emphasis  is  added  to  the  argument,  since  it  presup- 
poses that  the  second  member  of  the  balanced  sentence 
offers  a  contrast  with  the  first,  in  this  case  a  contrast, 
not  in  kind,  but  in  degree ;  a  contrast  because  of  the 
increasing  importance  of  the  second  member.  The 
sixth  sentence  summarizes  what  has  gone  before  it,  and 
is  short  and  periodic  in  form  in  order  to  present  it  con- 
cisely and  vividly.  The  seventh  could  be  put  in  the 
periodic  form  and  be  strengthened  by  the  change,  since 
its  principal  affirmation  results  from  the  subordinate 
parts  of  the  sentence  as  reasons.  Sentences  eight  and 
nine  are  short  sentences  again,  in  conclusion  giving  defi- 
niteness  to  the  more  general  expressions  preceding  them. 
Re-write  the  paragraph,  changing  the  form  of  all  but 
the  sixth,  eighth,  and  ninth  sentences,  and  compare  with 
the  original. 

109.  The  Uses  of  the  Balanced  Sentence.  —  The  bal- 
anced sentence  is  more  artificial  than  either  the  loose  or 
the  periodic.  Parallelism,  which  is  a  similar  literary 
device,  was  a  characteristic  element  in  Hebrew  poetry, 
as  may  be  seen  in  the  following  quotation  from  the 
Psalms : 


288  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

"  Blessed  is  the  man  that  walketh  not  in  the  counsel  of 

the  ungodly, 

Nor  standeth  in  the  way  of  sinners, 
Nor  sitteth  in  the  seat  of  the  scornful ;  " 

and  it  is  to  be  observed  that  the  similarity  of  form 
gives  added  emphasis  to  the  thought.  Evidently  the  use 
of  the  balanced  structure,  of  parallelism  with  or  without 
contrast,  or  of  contrast  so  pronounced  as  to  become  an- 
tithesis, is  out  of  place  except  when  there  is  occasion  for 
special  emphasis  of  the  peculiar  sort  which  these  forms 
secure.  When,  as  happens  so  often  in  the  Book  of  Job, 
a  number  of  clauses  of  like  import  succeed  one  another, 
the  fact  that  they  have  a  common  significance  is  made 
more  evident  by  parallelism,  which  is  merely  similarity 
of  form.  Contrast  always  secures  emphasis  ;  and  when 
the  contrast  is  heightened  by  similarity  of  form,  as  in 
the  balanced  sentence,  the  mental  effort  required  for 
holding  the  contrasting  thoughts  in  mind  is  lessened. 
Parallelism  accomplishes  much  the  same  result  ;  since 
the  reader  at  the  conclusion  of  the  first  of  the  like  ex- 
pressions can  put  that  aside  as  finished,  and  go  on  to  the 
next  with  the  expectation  of  coming  to  a  conclusion  at 
about  the  same  interval.  It  is  to  be  understood  that 
antithesis  is  the  formal  placing  of  two  things  in  contrast 
with  each  other ;  that  parallelism  is  likeness  of  structure 
in  successive  expressions;  that  a  balanced  sentence  may 
consist  of  clauses  which,  while  alike  in  structure,  are 
either  antithetical  or  similar  in  meaning  ;  and  that  an- 
tithesis does  not  necessarily  involve  balance  in  form. 


SENTENCES.  289 

i.  Now  the  novel  as  a  form  of  literature  is  contempo- 
raneous with  this  new  and  deepening  consciousness  of 
human  relationship  and  obligation.  2.  To-day  we  feel 
more  distinctly  than  ever  before  the  unceasing  and  perva- 
sive influence  of  other  lives  upon  our  lives ;  we  are 
weighted  down  as  never  before  by  a  sense  of  our  incalcu- 
lable obligations  to  our  fellows.  3.  We  no  longer  think 
of  ourselves  as  alone,  but  always  in  the  thick  of  relation- 
ships of  every  kind  and  quality ;  in  the  solitude  of  our 
own  souls  we  are  conscious  of  the  whole  striving,  suffer- 
ing world  about  us.  4.  Manfred  and  Obermann  no 
longer  move  us ;  we  are  touched  and  penetrated  by  the 
story  of  those  whose  lives  are  in  the  current  and  not 
moored  in  eddies.  5.  The  hero  of  to-day  does  not  con- 
sume his  soul  in  solitary  struggles  with  the  mysteries  of 
life,  but  spends  himself  without  stint  in  the  common  ser- 
vice. 6.  The  Faust  who  began  by  endeavoring  to  pierce 
the  mystery  of  existence  by  knowledge,  ends  by  building 
dykes  to  reclaim  the  earth  and  enlarge  the  opportunities 
of  his  fellows.  7.  As  the  drama  represented  the  strug- 
gles of  men  first  against  forces  outside  themselves,  and, 
later,  against  tendencies,  so  does  the  novel  represent  the 
recognition  by  men  of  their  complicated  social  relation- 
ships, and  the  variety,  the  nature,  and  the  force  of  the 
subtle  and  manifold  influences  which  are  set.  in  motion  by 
these  relationships. 

HAMILTON  MABIE  :  Fiction  as  a  Literary  Form.  Scrib- 
mr's  Magazine,  May,  1889. 

Written  Exercise.  —  The  employment  of  the  balanced 
sentence  throughout  this  paragraph  after  the  first  sen- 
tence is  particularly  effective.  The  second  sentence  is 
a  balanced  sentence  through  the  parallelism  in  form 
and  statement  of  its  two  members,  rather  than  through 
any  contrast  between  them.  The  same  is  true  of  the 
third  sentence,  while  the  fourth  and  fifth  develop 


290  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

the  contrast  between  past  and  present.  The  sixth  con- 
tinues this  contrast,  and  the  seventh  shows  a  likeness  in 
unlikeness  between  the  drama  of  the  past  and  the  novel 
of  the  present.  Re-write  the  paragraph,  changing  the 
balanced  sentences  to  other  forms,  but  retaining  the 
vividness  and  emphasis  of  presentation  as  far  as  possi- 
ble. Compare  the  result  with  the  original,  that  you 
may  determine  how  far  you  have  succeeded  in  producing 
the  same  effect  in  the  new  forms. 

no.  Style  as  Affected  by  Sentence  Form.  —  The 
loose  sentence  is  of  more  frequent  occurrence  than  the 
periodic  or  balanced  sentence.  Its  easy  conversational 
tone,  its  natural  arrangement  of  words  and  clauses, 
adapt  it  to  ready  use,  and  make  it  harmonize  well  with 
most  prose  composition.  The  danger  in  using  it  is  that 
it  may  become  too  loose.  A  succession  of  periodic 
sentences  may  be  fittingly  employed  in  treating  topics 
of  weight  and  dignity,  but  there  is  danger  in  using 
too  many  of  them  that  a  simple. theme  may  be  made 
to  appear  too  pompous.  Frequently  sentences  will  be 
periodic  up  to  a  certain  point,  and  then  by  the  addition 
of  a  clause  or  phrase  become  loose.  Such  is  the  fol- 
lowing sentence,  and  it  will  be  noticed  that  the  conclud- 
ing clause  is,  so  intimately  a  part  of  the  whole  that  the 
periodic  character  of  the  sentence  seems  hardly  changed. 

A  mixture  of  peoples,  a  modification  of  mind  and  habit, 
a  new  round  of  experiment  and  adjustment  amidst  th^ 
novel  life  of  the  baked  and  untilled  plain,  and  the  far 
valleys  with  the  virgin  forests  still  thick  upon  them ;  a 


SENTENCES.  291 

new  temper,  a  new  spirit  of  adventure,  a  new  impatience 
of  restraint,  a  new  license  of  life,  —  these  are  the  charac-  , 
teristic  notes  and  measures  of  the  time  when  the  nation 
spread  itself  at  large  upon  the  continent,  and  was  trans- 
formed from  a  group  of  colonies  into  a  family  of  states. 

In  this  sentence  it  will  be  observed  that  the  multipli- 
cation of  terms  in  apposition,  all  which  together  form 
the  subject  and  are  included  in  the  word  "these,"  in- 
creases the  sense  of  climax  which  the  suspense  pro- 
duces. Here  the  periodic  form  gives  to  the  style  the 
effect  of  mass  rather  than  an  added  dignity.  Ordi- 
narily the  loose  sentence  gives  the  effect  of  lightness 
and  grace  and  movement  ;  but  this,  of  course,  cannot  be 
true  when  the  sentence  is  so  loose  as  to  be  incoherent 
and  not  easily  held  in  mind. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  What  are  the  uses  and  what  is  the  effect  of  the  loose 
sentence  so  far  as  you  have  discovered  from  the  study  of 
this  chapter?     Biing  your  answer  to  class  in  writing. 

2.  Should  you  expect  to  find  the  loose  sentence  more 
frequent  in  narrative  or  in  argumentative  writing?     Why  ? 

3.  Bring  to  class  a  written  statement  of  the  uses  and 
the  effect  of  the  periodic  sentence,  referring  to  illustrative 
quotations  in  the  text  in  support  of  your  statements. 

4.  Should  you  expect  that  writing  in  a  style  character- 
ized by  complex  thought  would  show  more  or  less  use  of 
the  periodic  sentence  than  one  marked  by  simplicity  of 
thought  and  of  expression  ?     Why  ? 

5.  Do  you  find  any  sentence  perhaps  open  to  criticism 
because  of  its  form  in  the  selection  from  Lamb  on  page 


292  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

6.  On  each  of  the  following  subjects  write  a  paragraph 
of  two  hundred  words,  mainly  in  loose  sentences.     State 
on  your  paper  which  of  these  sentences  might  properly 
have  another  form,  giving  your  reasons. 

1.  The  Exhibits  at  the  County  Fair. 

2.  In  an  Old-Fashioned  Garden. 

3.  The  Pools  where  Fish  are  Plentiful. 

4.  The  Time  of  Harvests. 

5.  On  the  Reading  of  Old  Books. 

6.  The  Trial  of  Galileo. 

7.  The  Salem  Witchcraft 

7.  What  would  be  the  effect  of  a  series  of  long  periodic 
sentences  if  the  subject-matter  were  important  ?  if  it  were 
unimportant  ?     If  it  seemed  advisable  to  indicate  an  in- 
crease in  the  importance  of  the  subject  matter  by  the  form 
of  sentence  employed,  how  should  you  do  it  ? 

8.  Re-write  the  following  paragraph  in  looser  sentences, 
preserving  the  phraseology  as  far  as  possible,  but  chang- 
ing the  voice   of   verbs,  and    making  other  like   changes 
when  necessary.     Compare  with  the  original,  and  be  pre- 
pared to  defend  the  conclusions  you  draw  from  the  com- 
parison. 

There  is  no  great  event  in  modern  history,  or,  perhaps  it 
may  be  said  more  broadly,  none  in  all  history,  from  its  earli- 
est records,  less  generally  known,  or  more  striking  to  the  im- 
agination, than  the  flight  eastwards  of  a  principal  Tartar 
nation  across  the  boundless  steppes  of  Asia  in  the  latter  half 
of  the  last  century.  The  terminus  a  quo  of  this  flight  and 
the  terminus  ad  quern  are  equally  magnificent;  the  mightiest 
of  Christian  thrones  being  the  one,  the  mightiest  of  Pagan 
the  other.  And  the  grandeur  of  these  two  terminal  objects  is 
harmoniously  supported  by  the  romantic  circumstances  of 
the  flight.  In  the  abruptness  of  its  commencement,  and  the 
fierce  velocity  of  its  execution,  we  read  an  expression  of  the 
wild  barbaric  character  of  those  who  conducted  the  move- 
ment. In  the  unity  of  purpose  connecting  this  myriad  of 
wills,  and  in  the  blind  but  unerring  aim  at  a  mark  so  remote, 
there  is  something  which  recalls  to  the  mind  those  almighty 
instincts  that  propel  the  migrations  of  the  swallow  and  the 
leeming,  or  the  life-withering  marches  of  the  locust.  Then, 


SENTENCES.  293 

again,  in  the  gloomy  vengeance  of  Russia  and  her  vast  artil- 
lery, which  hung  upon  the  rear  and  skirts  of  the  fugitive  vas- 
sals, we  are  reminded  of  Miltonic  images,  —  such,  for  instance, 
as  that  of  the  solitary  hand  pursuing  through  desert  spaces 
and  through  ancient  chaos  a  rebellious  host,  and  overtaking 
with  volleying  thunders  those  who  believed  themselves  already 
within  the  security  of  darkness  and  of  distance. 

THOMAS  DE  QUINCEY  :  Flight  of  a  Tartar  Tribe. 

9.  In  the  following  paragraph,  composed  of  periodic 
sentences  throughout,  state  the  means  employed  to  secure 
suspense.  Re-write  the  paragraph,  changing  the  periodic 
sentences  to  loose,  and  breaking  one  sentence  up  into  two 
or  combining  two  into  one,  when  advisable.  Be  prepared 
to  give  reasons  in  each  case. 

There  are  moments  in  which  we  wish  that  we  could  feel  in 
the  same  way  at  home  with  our  own  Ceawlin  and  pur  own 
Ida.  We  are  tempted  to  mourn  that,  while  in  the  history  of 
the  Frank  the  sixth  century  of  our  own  era  is,  at  least  from 
the  picturesque  and  personal  side,  an  age  of  unrivalled  light, 
in  the  history  of  the  Angle  and  the  Saxon  it  is  the  very  black- 
ness of  darkness.  But  that  is  the  penalty  of  being  English- 
men ;  it  is  part  of  the  price  that  we  pay  for  cleaving  to  the 
tongue,  the  laws,  the  whole  historic  being,  of  our  earliest  fore- 
fathers, instead  of  casting  them  away  or  mingling  tnem  with 
those  of  another  folk,  that  we  must  look  back  to  this  darkness. 
That  we  have  to  grope  and  guess  to  find  out  what  manner  of 
men  our  fathers  were,  instead  of  gazing  on  their  living  shapes 
painted  for  us  by  the  pen  of  a  Gregory,  is  the  surest  of  all 
signs  that  our  fathers  stood  in  quite  another  case  towards  the 
land  which  they  conquered  and  towards  its  elder  folk,  from 
that  in  which  their  fellow-conquerors  in  Gaul  stood  towards 
the  land  and  the  folk  among  which  they  had  made  their  way. 
Had  the  nature  of  our  settlement  been  other  than  it  was,  had 
it  had  aught  in  common  with  the  settlement  of  the  Goth,  the 
Burgundian,  and  the  Frank,  such  darkness  could  not  have 
been.  Though  we  might  not  have  had  -a  Gregory,  since  few 
lands  in  any  age  have  had  any  one  who  could  tell  a  tale  and 
paint  a  picture  as  he  could  tell  and  paint  it,  a  Prosper,  an 
Idatius,  or  a  Fredegar,  we  might  at  least  have  had.  Though 
we  had  our  Bceda  in  course  of  time,  had  our  settlement  been 
as  the  settlement  of  the  Frank,  if  we,  and  not  another  folk, 
were  then  to  have  him  at  all,  we  should  have  had  our  Bceda 


294  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

long  before.  A  Boeda  recording  the  events  and  painting  the 
men  of  Britain  in  the  sixth  century,  though  he  might  have 
employed  Latin,  if  you  will,  would  have  been,  as  I  still  ven- 
ture to  think,  a  Boeda  speaking  Welsh.  Certainly,  speaking 
either  Welsh  or  Latin  as  his  mother  tongue,  in  the  matter  of 
speaking  our  own  tongue  in  which  we  were  born,  and  writing 
Latin  as  we  write  it  now,  as  a  tongue  which  the  rod  of  the 
schoolmaster  has  beaten  into  us,  he  would  assuredly  not  have 
been  one  like  ourselves. 

10.  Give  the  form  of  each  sentence  in  the  following, 
and  say  whether  that  form  is  satisfactory  or  not,  and  why. 
As  an  aid  in  making  this  decision  re-write  the  paragraph, 
changing  the  form  of  each  sentence  so  as  to    illustrate 
the  adequacy  or  inadequacy  of  the  present  structure. 

i.  There  may  be  nothing  new;  even  novelty  challenges 
suspicion,  as  each  age  absorbs  and  assimilates  the  accumula- 
tions of  the  past;  still  there  must  have  been  a  beginning,  and 
when  we  rightly  look  for  it  we  find  it,  like  the  milky  way,  not 
a  single  vast  source  of  light,  but  a  myriad  of  individual  points 
of  energy.  2.  Here  a  phrase,  there  a  phrase  ;  a  strain  from 
far  or  near;  then  a  combination;  and  fresh  genius  adds  a 
touch  of  fresh  distinction.  3.  This  will  be  clearly  felt  if  we 
choose  some  point  of  outset  and  follow  any  line  of  develop- 
ment. 4.  Take  the  four  old  verses  quoted  above  ;  then  make 
a  swallow's  flight  down  the  singing  breeze  of  English  poetry 
to  Tennyson  and  Swinburne  by  way  of  Keats.  5.  At  first 
the  impression  is  that  there  has-been  an  amazing  progress  in 
all  that  distinguishes  the  art  of  song.  6.  A  later  discovery, 
the  result  of  deliberate  analytical  examination,  shows  that  the 
progress  has  been  more  of  vocabulary  than  of  absolute  poetic 
recognition. 

MAURICE  THOMPSON  :   The  Touch  of  Magic. 
The  Independent,  Nov.  J,  1898. 

1 1 .  Point  out  the  periodic  sentences  in  the  paragraphs 
on  pages  62  to  78. 

12.  Compare  the  paragraph  at  the  bottom  of  page  63 
and  that  at  the  bottom  of  page  65  for  emphasis. 

13.  Considering  the  paragraph  from  Francis  Parkman 
on  page  72,  do  you  think  that  the  sentences  are  such  as 
to  give  to  the  paragraph  the  emphasis  of  thought  or  of 


SENTENCES.  295 

emotion  ?  Is  the  emphasis  of  the  paragraph  that  of  climax 
or  not  ?  What  forms  of  emphasis  are  employed  to  pro- 
duce the  result  ?  Do  you  find  anywhere  in  the  paragraph 
an  example  of  the  emphasis  of  balance  or  of  antithesis  ? 
Do  you  find  that  the  arrangement  of  words  in  the  sen- 
tence is  such  as  to  make  the  important  words  emphatic  or 
not? 

14.  What  effect  have  short  sentences  in  securing  em- 
phasis ?  Long  sentences  are  effective  for  what  purpose  ? 
Explain  the  difference  between  loose  and  periodic  sen- 
tences. What  are  balanced  sentences  ?  Study  the  follow- 
ing passages  with  reference  to  sentence-structure.  Show 
what  sort  of  sentence  is  most  prominent,  and  explain  in 
each  case  what  effect  is  produced. 

1.  Houses  —  faces  —  a  yell!      That  was   another   station. 
We  made  the  last  five  miles  in  five  minutes.     Did  you  ever 
ride  a  mile  in  one  minute  and  twelve  seconds?     But  we  are 
to  beat  it. 

Like  a  bird  —  like  an  arrow  —  like  a  bullet  almost,  we  are 
sped  forward.  Half  a  dozen  men  beside  the  track — section 
men  with  their  handcar.  They  lift  their  hats  and  yell,  but 
their  voices  did  not  reach  us.  We  pass  them  as  lightning 
flashes  through  the  heavens,  That  was  a  farm-house.  We 
saw  nothing  but  a  white  object  —  a  green  spot  —  two  or  three 
apple  trees  where  there  was  a  large  orchard. 

C.  B.  LEWIS  :  As  the  Pigeon  Flies. 

2.  "Thou  hast  taught  me  thy  arts  of  destruction;  for  this 
I  thank  thee,  and  now  take  heed  to  thy  steps  ;  the  red  man  is 
thy   foe.     When   thou   goest  forth  by  day,   my  bullet  shall 
whistle  past  thee  ;  when  thou  liest  down  by  night  my  knife 
is  at  thy  throat.     The  noonday  sun  shall  not  discover  thy 
enemy,  and  the  darkness  of  midnight  shall  not  protect  thy 
rest.     Thou  shalt  plant  in  terror,  and   I  will  reap  in  blood  ; 
thou  shalt  sow  the  earth  with  corn,  and  I  will  strew  it  with 
ashes ;  thou  shalt  go  forth  with  the  sickle,  and  I  will  follow 
after  with   the  scalping-knife  ;   thou  shalt  build,  and  I   will 
burn,  —  till  the  white  man  or  the  Indian  perish  from  the  land. 
Go  thy  way  for  this  time  in  safety,  —  but  remember,  stranger, 
there  is  eternal  war  betiveen  thee  and  me" 

EDWARD  EVERETT:  King  Philip  to  the  White  Settler. 


296  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  PARAGRAPH. 

in.  The  Nature  of  the  Paragraph —  If  we  analyze  an 
organized  composition  we  find  it  made  up  of  parts,  and 
these  parts,  in  turn,  made  up  of  smaller  parts,  a  system 
within  a  system,  each  constituting  a  unit  of  discourse! 
The  small  unit  we  call  a  sentence  ;  the  next  larger,  a 
paragraph.  If  we  remember  that  the  paragraph  is  the 
development  of  a  single  idea,  and,  consequently,  marks 
the  changes  of  thought  in  a  composition,  the  organic 
significance  of  the  paragraph  unit  becomes  evident,  and 
the  laws  governing  it  appear  of  the  highest  importance. 
"  Look  to  the  paragraph,"  says  Professor  Bain,  "  and  the 
.discourse  will  look  to  itself  ;  for,  although  a  discourse  as 
a  whole  has  a  method  or  plan  suited  to  its  nature,  yet  he 
that  fully  comprehends  the  method  of  the  paragraph  will 
also  comprehend  the  method  of  an  entire  work."  Cer- 
tain elementary  matters  in  connection  with  the  paragraph 
which  have  been  treated  in  Chapters  III.  and  IV., 
should  be  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the  pupils.  This  chap- 
ter will  be  devoted  to  a  consideration  of  the  paragraph 
as  an  organic  unit  of  literary  discourse,  governed  by 
rhetorical  principles,  and  containing  essential  qualities 
that  give  it  literary  character. 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  297 

112.  Principles  of  Paragraph-Structure — In  section  1 9 
the  paragraph  has  been  denned  as  a  dependent  member 
of  the  whole  composition,  and,  at  the  same  time,  a  com- 
position in  miniature.  From  another  point  of  view, 
we  may  also  say  that  a  paragraph  is  to  a  sentence 
what  a  sentence  is  to  a  word.  As  a  good  sentence 
is  formed  by  grouping  words  together  to  the  best 
advantage  for  clearness,  force,  and  elegance,  so  a  good 
paragraph  is  the  outcome  of  grouping  sentences  in  the 
same  way.  Under  somewhat  different  conditions,  then, 
the  principles  that  govern  one  are  equally  applicable 
to  the  other.  That  this  is  true  may  be  seen  by 
reference  to  some  well  constructed  paragraph.  Take, 
for  example,  the  paragraph  from  Charles  Eliot 
Norton's  "  Notes  of  Travel  and  Study  in  Italy," 
page  76.  The  topic  to  be  developed  is  stated  *in  sen- 
tence i.  Sentences  2  and  3  amplify  and  emphasize  the 
thought  in  I.  Sentence  4  is  the  first  proof  in  support 
of  the  proposition.  Sentences  5,  6,  and  7  strengthen 
4  and  make  it  more  convincing.  Sentences  8  and  9  are 
additional  proofs  in  support  of  I .  A  little  examination 
of  the  paragraph  will  show  the  same  structural  qualiti;  s 
that  characterize  a  good  sentence.  Every  sentence  has 
a  direct  bearing  on  the  idea  to  be  developed  ;  that  is,  the 
paragraph  is  a  unit  in  substance.  The  several  sentences 
are  so  related  in  thought  that  they  form  a  connected 
series,  showing  their  relation  to  one  another  and  to  the 
whole  ;  that  is,  the  paragraph  is  coherent.  The  arrange- 
ment of  the  sentences  is  most  effective  for  emphasis. 


298  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Thus  unity,  coherence,  and  emphasis  are  the  important 
qualities  to  be  attained  in  the  paragraph  as  in  the  sen- 
tence. 

113.  The  Principle  of  Unity Every  paragraph, 

whether  related  or  isolated,  should  be,  like  the  sentence, 
a  unit  in  substance.  As  the  several  words  in  a  sen- 
tence should  be  subservient  to  a  single  thought,  so  the 
several  sentences  in  a  paragraph  should  be  subservient 
to  a  single  topic  and  should  grow  out  of  it.  Unfortu- 
nately, we  are  constantly  tempted  when  discussing  a 
topic  to  let  our  minds  wander,  and  then  to  introduce 
irrelevant  matter.  In  this  way  we  violate  unity  of  struc- 
ture. We  should  use  the  utmost  care  to  keep  to  our 
topic,  and  subordinate  all  minor  matters  to  it.  At  the 
same  time  we  must  preserve  unity  of  tone,  which  requires 
that  the  paragraph  shall  preserve  throughout  the  level 
of  thought  and  feeling  on  which  it  began.  The  intro- 
.duction  of  a  commonplace  remark  into  a  paragraph 
the  prevailing  tone  of  which  is  pathetic,  or  of  the  friv- 
olous into  serious  matter,  shocks  the  aesthetic  sense 
of  the  reader,  and  destroys  his  pleasure  in  the  com- 
position. Clearness  and  force  are  promoted  by  unity  of 
structure  ;  elegance,  by  unity  of  tone. 

Read  the  paragraph  on  page  61,  and  note  how  care- 
fully the  author  has  preserved  unity  of  structure  and 
tone  in  his  writing.  Note,  also,  how  clearly  and  forcibly 
the  topic  is  impressed  on  our  minds.  A  good  summer 
rain  em  icJies  tJie  earth  is  the  topic.  Every  sentence  is 
intimately  connected  with  this  idea.  One  grows  out  of 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  299 

the  other.  The  long,  soft  rains  enrich  the  land  as  much 
as  silver  and  gold.  The  drops  of  rain  fall  to  the  earth 
as  silver  goes  to  the  mint.  The  roots  turn  the  drops  to 
coined  fruits  and  grains,  just  as  the  machinery  turns  the 
gold  and  silver  to  coins.  Thus  the  rain  clouds  have 
hidden  gold  in  them.  In  this  illustration  the  brevity  of 
the  paragraph  and  the  simplicity  of  the  thought  and  dic- 
tion render  it  easy  to  discern  the  unity  of  thought 
and  purpose. 

The  following  paragraph,  taken  from  Macaulay's 
description  of  the  "Trial  of  Warren  Hastings,"  is 
characterized  by  the  same  quality.  Macaulay  was 
a  very  careful  paragrapher,  and  we  should  expect 
to  find  his  paragraphs  characterized  by  unity.  A 
cursory  reading  of  the  passage  that  follows  will  illus- 
trate how  well  he  succeeded  in  this  respect.  Every 
sentence  adds  some  detail  which  has  a  direct  bearing 
upon  the  topic  idea,  and  the  oneness  of  the  thought  is 
made  more  prominent  by  the  arrangement  of  the  sen- 
tences in  the  general  form  of  a  climax.  Note,  also, 
how  the  tone  of  the  paragraph  is  maintained. 

Neither  military  nor  civil  pomp  was  wanting.  The 
avenues  were  lined  with  grenadiers.  The  streets  were  kept 
clear  by  cavalry.  The  peers,  robed  in  gold  and  ermine, 
were  marshaled  by  the  heralds  under  the  garter  king-at- 
arms.  The  judges,  in  their  vestments  of  state,  attended 
to  give  advice  on  points  of  law.  Near  a  hundred  and 
seventy  lords,  three  fourths  of  the  upper  house,  walked 
in  solemn  order  from  their  usual  place  of  assembling  to 
the  tribunal.  The  junior  baron  present  led  the  way  — 


300  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

Lord  Heathfield,  recently  ennobled  for  his  memorable 
defense  of  Gibraltar  against  the  fleets  and  armies  of 
France  and  Spain.  The  long  procession  was .  closed  by 
the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  earl  marshal  of  the  realm,  by  the 
great  dignitaries,  and  by  the  brothers  and  sons  of  the 
king.  Last  of  all  came  the  Prince  of  Wales,  conspicuous 
by  his  fine  person  and  noble  bearing. 


The  real  test  of  unity  in  a  paragraph  is  the  degree  in 
which  the  paragraph  matter  can  be  summarized  in  a 
single  unified  sentence.  The  illustrative  paragraphs  in 
the  preceding  chapters  will  furnish  excellent  examples 
for  applying  this  test.  Let  the  pupil  examine  some  of 
them,  and  explain  how  unity  is  preserved  in  each. 

114.  Violations  of  Unity.  —  We  have  already  learned 
that  digression  from  one's  line  of  thought  or  the  intro- 
duction of  irrelevant  matter  is  a  violation  of  unity.  It 
requires  a  well  disciplined  mind  and  a  perfect  control 
of  the  thinking  faculty  to  keep  our  thoughts  from 
wandering.  It  is,  therefore,  to  be  expected  that  digres- 
sions will  be  most  frequent  in  the  work  of  untrained 
writers  whose  minds  have  never  been  disciplined 
by  education  or  experience.  The  fault,  however, 
is  not  confined  to  this  class.  Our  best  writers 
sometimes  ramble.  Even  the  prose  of  De  Quincey  is 
marred  and  the  style  weakened  by  occasional  digres- 
sions from  the  thought.  To  understand  just  how 
weakening  and  confusing  such  a  fault  is,  let  us  glance 
for  a  moment  at  the  following  school  composition. 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  301 

THE  THIRD  CASKET  SCENE  IN  THE  MERCHANT  OF  VENICE. 

In  the  casket  scene  of  the  Merchant  of  Venice,  the  one 
in  which  Bassanio  chooses,  seems  to  be  the  most  interest- 
ing. We  are  all  interested  in  Bassanio,  for  he  was  one  of 
the  first  characters  introduced.  He  went  to  a  great  deal 
of  trouble  to  fit  himself  out  to  seek  Portia,  and  in  every 
respect  seemed  worthy  of  her.  He  also  is  in  love  with 
Portia,  while  the  other  two  who  chose  were  not,  but  were 
only  money-seekers,  not  caring  very  much  for  her  per- 
sonally, but  only  for  her  wealth. 

In  the  choosing  of  the  Prince  of  Morocco  he  turned  to 
the  golden  casket.  He  thought  only  of  the  bright  exterior 
and  did  not  look  for  what  there  was  behind  it.  How 
often  people  are  judged  in  about  the  same  way  !  If  they 
are  good-looking,  they  are  thought  to  be  good  and  beau- 
tiful, yet  how  often,  as  they  are  better  known,  it  is  found 
out  that  not  they,  but  their  plainer  companions,  make  the 
best  and  truest  friends  ! 

Bassanio's  estimate  of  the  casket  is  that  of  a  man,  not 
looking  merely  at  the  gaudy  outside,  but  wishing  to  find 
the  better  and  inner  nature.  His  comments  on  the  golden 
casket  imply  "  that  all  is  not  gold  that  glitters,''  but 
behind  all  the  show  there  may  be  something  deceiving. 
He  also  says  the  world  is  constantly  deceived  by  just 
such  people. 

The  silver  one  he  would  not  take,  as  that  was  the 
metal  which  is  used  between  men  for  buying  and  selling. 
Instead  he  chose  the  plainest  one,  that  which  had  a  dull 
exterior,  and  won  Portia.  How  often  in  our  daily  lives 
we  see  a  similar  choice  rewarded  ! 

That  the  paragraphs  of  the  foregoing  selection  are 
deficient  in  unity  is  apparent,  even  to  a  casual  observer. 
In  the  first  sentence  we  are  told  that  the  scene  in  which 
Bassanio  chooses  seems  to  be  the  most  interesting. 
We  naturally  expect  that  the  writer  will  tell  us  why  it 


302  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

is  the  most  interesting.  The  second  sentence  indirectly 
throws  some  light  on  the  matter,  but  the  third  and 
fourth  sentences  seem  to  be  utterly  at  variance  with 
what  precedes  and  with  each  other.  In  the  second  and 
third  paragraphs  the  writer  rambles  from  one  thing  to 
another  at  random,  the  different  sentences  having  little 
or  no  connection  with  one  another. 

115.  Variety  in  the  Paragraph.  —  Variety  in  sentence 
forms  has  already  been  considered  in  section  35.  Lest 
the  pupil  in  his  study  of  unity  should  be  misled,  the 
subject  may  be  still  further  emphasized  in  connection 
with  the  paragraph.  Because  all  sentences  in  a  para- 
graph should  be  a  unit  in  thought  and  purpose,  it  by  no 
means  follows  that  they  should  be  alike  in  form.  With 
unity  of  thought  should  go  variety  of  statement. 
Nothing  could  be  more  tedious  and  stupefying  than 
a  succession  of  sentence  after  sentence  constructed 
on  the  same  model,  subject  first  and  verb  follow- 
ing. When  several  sentences  iterate  or  illustrate 
the  same  thought,  they  may  fittingly  be  formed 
alike.  This  parallelism  of  form  is  a  natural  mode  of 
expressing  parallelism  of  thought,  but  even  too  much 
of  this  is  wearisome.  Variety  is  essential  in  holding  the 
reader's  interest.  A  judicious  change  of  sentence  form 
gives  flexibility  to  one's  style.  It  gives  it  a  freshness 
and  zest  which  is  pleasing  to  the  taste  and  stimulating 
to  the  mind  of  the  reader.  A  writer  who  aims  at 
variety  will  transpose  phrases  and  clauses  ;  he  '  will 
avoid  the  excessive  use  of  and  and  but ;  he  will  alternate 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  303 

long  and  short  sentences,  complex  and  simple,  loose  and 
periodic ;  in  short,  he  will  adopt  a  multitude  of  devices 
to  break  the  monotony  of  expression.  Our  best 
authors  have  followed  this  course,  and  it  adds  greatly 
to  our  interest  in  their  writing. 

116.  Coherence.  —  The  second  quality  of  a  good  para- 
graph, as  of  a  good  sentence,  is  coherence.  Coleridge, 
referring  to  some  of  the  books  of  his  day,  speaks  of 
sentences  having  a  relation  to  one  another  like  that  of 
marbles  in  a  bag ;  they  touch  without  adhering.  An 
essential  quality  of  a  good  paragraph  is  that  the  sen- 
tences stick  together.  No  sentence  exists  for  itself  alone, 
but  each  is  a  part  of  an  organic  whole  ;  consequently 
the  sentences  should  follow  in  logical  order,  growing 
naturally  one  out  of  the  other,  so  that  the  reader  may 
follow  the  line  of  thought  step  by  step.  The  relation 
of  the  several  sentences  to  each  other  and  to  the  con- 
text should  be  clear.  If  a  sentence  can  be  put  in  one 
pface  as  well  as  another,  there  is  a  serious  defect  some- 
where, and  the  paragraph  should  be  recast.  A  para- 
graph which  lacks  coherence  is  obscure  and  weak, 
because  the  thought  is  not  easily  followed ;  it  fatigues 
the  mind  and  taxes  the  attention  of  the  reader  where 
it  should  stimulate  and  arouse  him  ;  and  lastly  it  is  not 
satisfying  to  the  taste,  and  is,  therefore,  inelegant. 

Contrast  the  following  paragraph  from  Irving's 
"  Sketch-Book  "  with  the  selection  quoted  in  section 
1 14  above. 

Note  in  Irving's  paragraph  the  selection  of  material, 


304  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

the  continuity  of  thought,  and  the  skillful  use  of  con- 
necting words  that  bind  sentence  to  sentence.  Do 
these  things  make  the  thought  more  clear  ?  Do  they 
serve  to  hold  the  attention  ?  Are  they  pleasing  ?  Are 
the  same  qualities  apparent  in  the  other  selection  ? 

It  is  a  pious  custom  in  some  Catholic  countries,  to 
honor  the  memory  of  saints  by  votive  lights  burnt  before 
their  pictures.  The  popularity  of  a  saint,  therefore,  may 
be  known  by  the  number  of  these  offerings.  One,  per- 
haps, is  left  to  moulder  in  the  darkness  of  his  little  chapel ; 
another  may  have  a  solitary  lamp  to  throw  its  blinking 
rays  athwart  his  effigy ;  while  the  w<hole  blaze  of  adora- 
tion is  lavished  at  the  shrine  of  some  beatified  father  of 
renown.  The  wealthy  devotee  brings  his  huge  luminary 
of  wax  ;  the  eager  zealot,  his  seven-branched  candlestick  ; 
and  even  the  mendicant  pilgrim  is  by  no  means  satisfied 
that  sufficient  light  is  thrown  upon  the  deceased,  unless 
he  hangs  up  his  little  lamp. of  smoking  oil.  The  conse- 
quence is,  in  the  eagerness  to  enlighten,  they  are  often 
apt  to  obscure  ;  and  I  have  occasionally  seen  an  unlucky 
saint  almost  smokecl  out  of  countenance  by  the  officious- 
ness  of  his  followers. 

The  foregoing  passage  is  coherent ;  and  from  it  we 
may  see  what  coherence  in  the  paragraph  depends  on, 
namely,  selection,  arrangement,  and  the  use  of  connect- 
ing words. 

117.  Selection.  -  -  The  principle  of  selection  has 
already  been  considered  in  connection  with  emphasis 
in  sentences.  It  is  no  less  important  in  contributing  to 
the  coherence  of  a  paragraph.  If  a  paragraph  is  to  be 
coherent,  we  must  suppress  many  details,  and  present 
only  those  which  have  an  important  bearing  upon  the 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  305 

purpose  of  the  paragraph,  and  give  force  and  distinc- 
tion to  the  main  idea.  What  can  easily  be  supplied  by 
the  reader  or  left  to  his  imagination  should  be  omitted. 
The  effort  to  enumerate  minute  particulars,  to  introduce 
inharmonious  matter  in  the  form  of  remote  figures  of 
speech  and  misleading  comparisons  or  contrasts  clogs  the 
flow  of  thought  and  fatigues  the  mind  of  the  reader. 

The  following  quotation  from  Hawthorne  illustrates 
how  a  writer,  admirable  at  his  best,  may  at  times  lapse 
into  carelessness  in  making  selection  of  subject  matter. 

In  my  native  town  of  Salem,  at  the  head  of  what,  half 
a  century  ago,  in  the  days  of  old  King  Derby,  was  a  bus- 
tling wharf,  —  but  which  is  now  burdened  with  decayed 
wooden  warehouses,  and  exhibits  few  or  no  symptoms 
of  commercial  life;  except,  perhaps,  a  bark  or  brig,  half 
way  down  its  melancholy  length,  discharging  hides ;  or  near 
at  hand,  a  Nova  Scotia  schooner,  pitching  out  her  cargo  of 
firewood,  —  at  the  head,  I  say,  of  this  dilapidated  wharf, 
which  the  tide  even  overflows,  and  along  which,  at  the  base 
and  in  the  rear  of  the  row  of  buildings,  the  track  of  many 
languid  years  is  seen  in  a  border  of  unt/i rifty  grass,  —  here, 
with  a  view  from  its  front  windows  adown  this  not  very 
enlivening  prosptct,  and  thence  across  the  harbor,  stands  a 
spacious  edifice  of  brick.  From  the  loftiest  point  of  its 
roof,  during  precisely  three  and  half  hours  of  each  fore- 
noon, floats  or  droops,  in  breeze  or  calm,  the  banner  of 
the  republic  ;  but  with  the  thirteen  stripes  turned  vertically, 
instead  of  horizontally,  and  thus  indicating  that  a  civil,  and 
not  a  military  post  of  Uncle  Sam's  government  is  established 
here. 

In  this  paragraph  Hawthorne  seems  to  have  allowed 
his  mind  to  ramble  at  will,  and  to  have  defied  all  prin- 


306  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

ciples  of  paragraph  structure.  He  is  describing  the 
situation  and  external  appearance  of  the  Salem  Custom 
House  ;  but  the  reader's  mind  is  continually  diverted  to 
other  things,  or  is  so  burdened  with  details  that  it  loses 
sight  of  the  main  idea. 

118.  Coherent  Arrangement.  —  Incoherence  most  fre- 
quently  results   from   an  illogical  arrangement    of  sen- 
tences.    The  matter  of  a  coherent   arrangement   is  but 
an  amplification  of    our  definition    of   coherence.     The 
salient  fact  to  be  remembered  is,  that  matters  connected 
in  thought  should  be  kept  together.     Unlike  the  sentence, 
which  is  a  matter  of  revision,  the  paragraph  is  a  matter 
of  prevision.     Before  beginning  to  write  a  paragraph  we 
should  have  in  mind  the  sequence  of  ideas.     In  arranging 
the  order  of  words  in  a  sentence  we  are  confined  within 
the  very  narrow  limits  of  good  use,  but  in  a  paragraph 
we  may  arrange  our  sentences  in  any  order  we  please. 
We  must,  then,  plan  our  paragraph  so  that  there  shall 
be  a  progressive  development  of  the  thought.     Generally 
speaking,  the  most  natural  order  of  arrangement  will  be 
as  follows  :    I,  subject  proposed  ;   2,   explanation  of  the 
subject  by  repetition  or  definition  ;   3,   establishment   of 
subject  by  proof,  illustration,  or  detail ;  4,  application  of 
the  subject  ;  5,  summary.      In  particular  cases  the  kind 
of  discourse  will  furnish  a  key  to  the  proper  order.     In 
narrative  paragraphs  the  order  of  events  in  time  is  best  ; 
in  descriptions,  the  order  of  objects  in  space.      In  ex- 
position  or   argument   the   most   frequent   arrangement 
will  be  from  the  least  to  the  most  important.      Usually 


THE  PARAGRAPH. 


307 


the  thought  as  it  develops  will  dictate  the  natural 
arrangement.  A  careful  study  of  the  sections  on  pages 
61-78,  and  the  examples  there  given,  will  illustrate 
how  much  paragraph-structure  depends  on  a  coherent 
arrangement.  Study  the  passages  in  the  following 
columns,  and  note  how  much  is  gained  by  making  a 
more  coherent  arrangement  of  each,  as  in  the  second 
column. 


The  beaver  is  an  animai 
about  the  size  of  a  dog, 
with  short  legs,  and  a  body 
nearly  three  feet  long.  His 
life  and  his  wonderful  feats 
as  a  little  engineer  form  the 
most  interesting  example  of 
the  wonders  of  animal  in- 
stinct to  be  found  in  the 
whole  range  of  natural  his- 
tory. The  fur  of  the  beaver 
was  at  one  time  highly 
prized  ;  but  the  substitution 
of  silk  for  beaver-skin  in  the 
manufacture  of  hats  has  ren- 
dered it  of  comparatively 
little  value  in  the  present 
day.  Beavers  .were  for- 
merly very  numerous  in  the 
pine-woods  of  North  Amer- 
ica ;  but  owing  to  the  inces- 
sant persecution  they  have 
undergone  from  the  hunter 
and  the  trapper,  they  are 
now  comparatively  scarce. 


The  beaver  is  an  animal 
about  the  size  of  a  dog,  with 
short  legs,  and  a  body  nearly 
three  feet  long.  Beavers 
were  formerly  very  numer- 
ous in  the  pine-woods  of 
North  -America  ;  but  owing 
to  the  incessant  persecution 
they  have  undergone  from 
the  hunter  and  the  trapper, 
they  are  now  'comparatively 
scarce.  The  fur  of  the 
beaver  was  at  one  time 
highly  prized  ;  but  the  sub- 
stitution of  silk  for  beaver- 
skin  in  the  manufacture  of 
hats  has  rendered  it  of  com- 
paratively little  value  in  the 
present  day.  The  beaver's 
life  and  his  wonderful  feats 
as  a  little  e>  gineer  form 
the  most  interesting  ex- 
ample of  the  wonders  of 
animal  instinct  to  be  found 
in  the  whole  range  of  natural 
history. 


308 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


We  have  several  tfcnes 
dwelt  on  the  desirability  of 
there  being  a  formidable 
opposition  party  in  the 
United  States.  No  intelli- 
gent observer  doubts  that 
the  Republican  party  has 
twice  elected  a  President 
largely  through  the  weak- 
ness of  the  party  opposed 
to  him.  It  has  been  unfor- 
tunate for  the  nation  during 
the  last  few  years  that  it 
has  had  no  strong  opposi- 
tion party.  It  is  healthful, 
politically  speaking,  that  the 
party  in  the  majority  and  in 
power  should  be  put  upon  its 
good  behavior  —  healthful 
for  itself  and  for  the  nation. 
A  minoriiy  strong  enough 
to  threaten  it  with  defeat  if 
it  fails  in  this  respect  is  the 
natural  agent  to  accomplish 
such  an  end. 


We  have  several  times 
dwelt  on  the  desirability  of 
there  being  a  formidable 
opposition  party  in  the 
United  States.  It  is  health- 
ful, politically  speaking,  that 
the  party  in  the  majority 
and  in  power  should  be  put 
upon  its  good  behavior  — 
healthful  for  itself  and  for 
the  nation.  A  minority 
strong  enough  to  threaten 
it  with  defeat  if  it  fails  in 
this  requirement  is  the 
natural  agent  to  accomplish 
such  an  end.  It  has  been 
unfortunate  for  the  nation 
during  the  last  few  years 
that  it  has  had  no  such 
party.  No  intelligent  ob- 
server doubts  that  the  Re- 
publican party  has  twice 
elected  a  President  largely 
through  the  weakness  of 
the  party  opposed  to  him. 


119.  The  Use  of  Connectives.  —  When  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  sentences  is  good,  and  the  thought  simple, 
the  connection  is  easy  to  follow ;  but  in  complex  thought 
an  orderly  arrangement  may  not  suffice  to  make  the 
paragraph  coherent.  Under  such  circumstances  some 
connecting  device  which  shall  link  thought  to  thought 
is  necessary.  Such  a  device  is  found  in  the  use  of  vari- 
ous connecting  words,  as  conjunctions,  conjunctive 
adverbs,  and  demonstrative  pronouns,  which  abound  in 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  309 

every  coherent  paragraph,  and  give  a  firmness  and 
compactness  that  would  otherwise  be  lacking.  The 
more  common  words  of  this  class  are  this,  that,  these, 
those,  such,  and,  but,  for,  indeed,  accordingly,  however, 
therefore,  on  the  contrary,  consequently,  no  doubt.  Any 
word,  however,  in  a  clause  or  sentence  is  a  connecting 
word,  if  it  refers  specifically  to  a  preceding  clause  or 
sentence.  An  important  word  is  often  repeated,  or  a 
phrase  is  introduced,  which  serves  to  indicate  the  con- 
nection of  the  thoughts  in  the  paragraph.  With- 
out connecting  words  and  phrases  the  mind  of  the 
reader  would  be  diverted  from  the  thought  to  the  work 
of  supplying  the  transition,  and  the  paragraph  would 
become  obscure.  Note  to  what  extent  connecting  words 
and  expressions  are  used  in  the  following  paragraphs, 
as  indicated  by  the  italics.  Re-write  the  paragraphs, 
omitting  all  connecting  words,  and  compare  the  result 
with  the  original. 

A  report  is  going  the  rounds  of  the  newspapers  — 
and  may,  nevertheless,  be  true  —  that  some  Cornell  Uni- 
versity students  were  ruled  out  from  rowing  in  the  Henley 
regatta  because  they  had  crossed  the  ocean  in  a  cattle- 
steamer,  and  had  therefore  earned  money  by  the  work  of 
their  hands.  The  college  oarsmen,  it  was  stated,  "  must 
be  gentlemen,"  and  no  gentleman  could  have  worked  with 
his  hands.  The  rumor  looks  a  little  improbable,  because  v& 
"  Tom  Brown  at  Rugby,"  written  nearly  half  a  century  ago, 
a  college  crew  is  described  as  being  saved  by  a  plebeian 
student,  who  had,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  done  some  manual 
labor.  If,  however,  the  tale  be  true,  it  points  to  a  difference, 
still  insurmountable,  between  the  English  and  American 
students.  THOMAS  WENTWORTH  HIGGINSON  -. 

English  and  American  Gentlemen. 


310  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Paint  us  an  angel,  if  you  can,  with  a  floating  violet 
robe  and  a  face  paled  by  the  celestial  light ;  paint  us  yet 
oftener  a  Madonna,  turning  her  mild  face  upward  and 
opening  her  arms  to  welcome  the  divine  glory ;  but  do  not 
impose  upon  us  any  aesthetic  rules  which  shall  banish 
from  the  region  of  Art  those  old  women  scraping  carrots 
with  their  work-worn  hands,  those  heavy  clowns  taking 
holiday  in  a  dingy  pot-house,  those  rounded  backs  and 
stupid,  weather-beaten  faces  that  have  bent  over  the  spade 
and  done  the  rough  work  of  the  world,  those  homes  with 
their  tin  pans,  their  brown  pitchers,  their  rough  curs,  and 
their  clusters  of  onions  In  this  world  there  are  so  many 
of  these  common,  coarse  people  who  have  no  picturesque, 
sentimental  wretchedness !  It  is  so  needful  we  should 
remember  their  existence,  else  we  may  happen  to  leave 
them  quite  out  of  our  religion  and  philosophy,  and  frame 
lofty  theories  which  fit  only  a  world  of  extremes.  There- 
fore let  Art  always  remind  us  of  them;  therefore  let  us 
always  have  men  ready  to  give  the  loving  pains  of  a  life 
to  the  faithful  representing  of  common-place  things  - —  men 
who  see  the  beauty  in  these  common-place  things,  and 
delight  in  showing  how  kindly  the  light  of  heaven  falls 
on  them. 

GEORGE  ELIOT  :  Adam  Bede. 


120.  Omission  of  Connecting  Words.  — To  secure  vigor 
of  style  and  rapidity  of  movement  connecting  words 
are  sometimes  omitted.  Such  omission  is,  at  times, 
especially  effective  in  narration  and  description.  The 
practice,  however,  is  dangerous,  for  it  is  likely  to  give 
the  impression  of  incoherence.  It  is  advisable  only 
when  the  ideas  are  simple,  and  the  sentences  short  and 
closely  related  in  thought.  Even  then  the  writer  too 
often  sacrifices  smoothness  of  «tyle  for  startling  effects. 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  311 

The  following  paragraph  illustrates  particularly  well  the 
effect  produced  by  omitting  connecting  words,  viz., 
that  of  energy  and  rapidity  :  — 

Rain,  rain,  rain  !  All  day,  all  night,  steady  raining. 
Will  it  never  stop  ?  The  hay  is  out,  and  spoiling.  The 
rain  washes  the  garden.  The  ground  is  full.  All  things 
have  drunk  their  fill.  The  springs  revive,  the  meadows 
are  wet ;  the  rivers  run  discolored  with  soil  from  every 
hill.  Smoking  cattle  reek  under  the  sheds.  Hens,  and 
fowl  in  general,  shelter  and  plume.  The  sky  is  leaden. 
The  clouds  are  full  yet.  The  long  fleece  covers  the 
mountains.  The  hills  are  capped  in  white.  The  air  is 
full  of  moisture. 

HENRY  WARD  BEECHER  :   Summer  Rain. 


Contrast    this    paragraph  with    the    paragraph    from 
Charles   Lamb,  page  50,  after  omitting  the  connectives, V/UA 
and  note  the  difference  of  effect  in  the  latter. 

121.    Mass  in  the  Paragraph A  paragraph  should 

be  well  massed ;  that  is,  the  material  should  be  so 
arranged  that  the  chief  parts  will  most  readily  catch 
the  eye  of  the  reader,  and  produce  the  proper  effect  on 
his  mind.  The  chief  parts  are  naturally  the  ideas  in 
the  topic  to  be  developed  and  in  the  summary  of  the 
whole.  All  other  parts  must  be  subordinated  to  these. 
In  other  words,  all  parts  must  be  given  prominence  in 
proportion  to  their  importance.  A  well-massed  para- 
graph, then,  must  be  arranged  with  reference  to  emphasis 
and  proportion. 

Emphasis.  —  The  general  law  of  emphasis  is  to  put 
the    most   important    matters    in    the    most    prominent 


312  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

places.  The  most  prominent  places  are  naturally  the 
beginning  and  the  end  of  the  paragraph,  for  instinctively 
the  eye  and  the  mind  dwell  a  little  longer  on  these 
points  than  on  any  other  points  in  the  discussion. 
Emphasis  may  be  secured,  then,  by  stating  the  topic 
idea  at  the  beginning,  following  it  with  details  and  re- 
lated matter,  and  ending  with  a  summary  of  the  whole. 
Emphasis  is  also  attained  by  reversing  the  normal 
order,  and  putting  the  topic-idea  at  the  end.  In  this 
way  the  reader  is  led  on,  step  by  step,  and  his  mind 
kept  in  suspense  until  his  interest  has  been  sufficiently 
aroused  to  make  the  effect  of  the  leading  idea  most 
impressive.  This  is  an  almost  necessary  method  when 
the  principal  thought  is  one  that  the  reader  may  not 
accept  or  understand  until  the  conditions  or  proofs  upon 
which  it  is  dependent  have  been  presented.  Another 
means  of  securing  emphasis,  somewhat  akin  to  the  last, 
is  by  progressive  development  of  the  thoughts  from  the 
least  to  the  most  important,  that  is,  by  climax.  In.  this 
case  the  important  elements  are  introduced  at  the  point 
where  the  reader  is  best  prepared  for  them,  and  he  is 
constantly  presented  with  something  that  is  more  and 
more  stimulating  to  the  mind.  Emphasis  is  destroyed 
when  the  paragraph  begins  or  ends  with  unimportant 
matters. 

Proportion.  - --  The  law  of  proportion  demands,  first, 
that  only  enough  be  said  to  subserve  the  purpose  of 
the  paragraph ;  second,  that  the  various  details  be  treated 
and  amplified  in  proportion  to  their  respective  impor- 


THE  PARAGRAPH. 


313 


tance,  the  less  important  being  stated  as  briefly  as 
possible,  so  as  not  to  claim  too  much  of  the  reader's 
attention  ;  and  third,  that  a  careful  'distinction  be  made 
between  principal  and  subordinate  matters.  Too  much 
amplification  or  too  extensive  illustration  violates  pro- 
portion. 

Study  carefully  the  paragraphs  on  pages  50-53. 
Note  whether  each  is  arranged  to  the  best  advantage  for 
emphasis.  Study  the  material  of  each,  and  explain  how 
the  law  of  proportion  is  maintained.  Do  the  same  with 
the  paragraphs  in  Appendix  C.  Contrast  these  with  the 
former,  and  note  the  difference  in  emphasis  and  pro- 
portion. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  Show  how  an  organized  composition   is  made   up, 
and   illustrate  from  some  composition  at  hand.     Why  is 
the  paragraph  an  important   organic  unit  of  discourse  ? 
Show  how  a  paragraph  is  to  a  sentence  what  a  sentence 
is  to  a  word. 

2.  Of  what  is  a    well-constructed    paragraph  the  out- 
come ?     Show  this.     What  are  the  principles  that  govern 
a  well-constructed  paragraph  ?     WTrite  a  paragraph  denn- 
ing what  a  good  paragraph  is,  and  show  that  you  have 
applied  these  principles. 

3.  What  is  unity  in  the  paragraph  ?     Distinguish  be- 
tween unity  of  structure  and  unity  of  tone.     What  quali- 
ties  of   style   does  each'   promote  ?     How  may   unity   be 
violated  ?     What  is  the  test  of  unity  ? 

4.  Look  over  the  papers   and  periodicals  at  hand  for 
paragraphs    that    lack    unity.     Comment   on    and    revise 
them,  explaining  how  your  changes  promote  unity.     Com- 
ment   on    the    compositions    brought    to    the    class-room, 
showing  how  they  possess  or  lack  unity. 


3H  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

5.    Show  wherein  the  following    selections  lack  unity. 
Re-write  them,  and  improve  them  if  possible. 

1.  About  one-half  of  the  voters  of  this  city  vote  merely  be- 
cause it  is  a  custom.     They  do  not  care  who  gets  into  office. 
Ask  them  whom  they  are  going  to  vote  for,  and  they  say,  "I 
don't  know;   one  is  just  as  good  as   the  other  to  me,"  or, 
"  What  difference  does  it  make  ?  There  aren't  any  that  can  go 
into  politics  and  remain  honest."     Is  this  so?     Yes  and  no. 
Politics  of  to-day  is  so  corrupted  that  an  honest  and  honorable 
man  striving  for  office  has  hardly  any  show  against  a  candi- 
date who  will  buy  his  election.     In  order  to  get  an  office  he 
must  get  his  friends  to  lay  out  a  campaign  and  spend  a  large 
sum  of  money.     He  must  advertise,  and  must  hire  carriages 
to  take  people  to  the  polls. 

2.  If  Mr.  Schwab  had  confined  himself  to  what  he  really 
knew  all  would  have  been  well.     But  he  could  not  be  con- 
tented to  sit  down  without  making  a  thrust  at  labor  organiza- 
tion.    He  who  had  himself  once  been  a  wage-worker,  now 
that  he  had  come  to  receive  the  highest  salary  in  the  land, 
was    "opposed  to   labor  organization  in  the  interest  of  the 
laboring  man   himself."      How  often   has   it  occurred    that 
magnanimous,  patronizing  souls  want  laborers  to  throw  away 
their  only  weapons  of  defense  "for  their  own  good."    The 
ruse  is  an  old  one,  but  it  no  longer  deceives  anybody.     The 
same  Mr.  Schwab  does  not  believe,  however,  that  corpora- 
tions should  be  made  to  show  their  accounts  to  the  -public ;  in 
fact,  he  does  not  seem  to  believe  that  corporations  should  be 
made  to  do  anything  but  make  big  dividends. 

3.  Objection  has   been  made  from  time   to   time  to   the 
practice  among  some  public  men  or  women  of  lending  their 
name  or  portrait  to  the  indorsement  of  some  manufactured 
article.     But  probably  this  will  stop,  as  the  president  sets  the 
example.     Mr.  McKinley's   coming  transcontinental  trip   is 
going  to  be  a  very  expensive   affair,  the  Washington    Post 
points  out.     It  will  cost   about  $50,000,  apart  entirely  from 
the   money  spent   by   local   committees  in  entertaining   the 
president  and   his  cabinet.     For  such   hospitalities  $500,000 
will  go.     Other  great  cities,  such   as  New  Orleans,  Omaha, 
and  Chicago,  are  not  liable  to  exhibit  parsimony  in  the  wel- 
come they  offer.     As  for  the  excursionists,  the  trip  will  not 
cost  them  a  dollar.     The  railroads  will  pay  all  expenses  for 
transportation,  even  furnishing  the  meals,  and  not  one  of  the 
distinguished   personages  in  the  party  will  be  permitted  to 
spend  a  cent  from  the  time  they  leave  Washington  until  they 
return.    The  excursion  will  be  a  big  advertisement  for  the 


THE  PARAGRAPH.  315 

railroads  over  which  the  president  will  pass,  and  there  has 
been  a  vigorous  competition  among  them  for  the  opportunity 
of  transporting  the  distinguished  party. 

6.  Why  should  there  be  variety  in  a  paragraph  ?     How 
may  variety  be  obtained  ?     Show  how  a  paragraph  may 
have  unity  and  variety  at  the  same  time.     Explain  how 
variety  is  obtained  in  each  of  the  paragraphs  on  pages  50 
to  53- 

7.  What  is  coherence?      State  briefly  how  coherence 
may  be  secured.     Compare  coherence  in  the  paragraph 
with     coherence    in    the    sentence.       Select     paragraphs 
from  the  newspapers  that  you  find  either  coherent  or  in- 
coherent, and  comment  upon  them.     Are  the  selections 
under  5  coherent  ?     Criticise  them. 

8.  What  do  you  understand  by  the  principle  of  selec- 
tion?    What  directions  can  you  give  for  selecting  material 
for  a  paragraph  ?     What  is  the  effect  of  poor  selection  ? 

9.  What  directions  can  you  give   for  the  arrangement 
of  material  in  a  paragraph  ?     Tell  how  you  would  arrange 
material  in  each  of  the  four  kinds  of  discourse,  —  narra- 


tion, description,  exposition,  argument. 

s*          10.    How  do  connectives  help  in  securing  coherence?  C0"*1 
/      Select  passages  from  the  magazines  and  books  at  hand, 


and  point  out  the  connecting  words.  Show  how  they  link 
thought  to  thought  in  the  passage  under  consideration. 
What  effect  on  a  paragraph  has  the , omission  of  ^connect- 
ing words  ?  TV^u^  *A  <r* 

1 1 .  What  do  you  understand  by  k  well-massed  para- 
graph ?     How  may  emphasis  in  a  paragraph  be  secured  ? 
How  destroyed  ?     What  is  the  law  of  proportion  ?     How 
may  proportion  be  violated,  and  what  is  the  effect  on  the 
paragraph  ? 

12.  Show  the  relation  of  sentence  to  sentence  in  the 
extract  from  Ruskin,  page  123,  and  say  whether  you  find 
any  digression  or  not.     Is  it  coherent  or  not  ? 


316  COMPOSITION  A  AD  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

THE    WHOLE    COMPOSITION. 

122.  The  Relation  of  the  Whole   Composition   to  its 
Parts.  —  In  Part  III.  we  have  traced  the  several  units 
of  composition  from  the  smaller  to  the  larger,  and  have 
considered  them  with  reference  to  their  literary  bearing. 
We  have  found  that  they  are  parts  of  a  system,  and  are 
governed  by  the  same  rhetorical  principles  applied  under 
the    different    conditions    that    their  relations   demand, 
The  principles  that  govern  a  well-constructed  sentence 
are  but  the  principles  that  govern  a  paragraph.     It  is 
but  a  step  farther  to  realize  that  these  principles  are 
equally  applicable  to  the  larger  unit,  the  whole  compo- 
sition, whether  it  is  a  single  paragraph,  or  because  of 
more  extended  treatment  is  divided  into  several  para- 
graphs.    The  end  sought  in  every  case  is  to  make  our 
writing  clear,  forcible,  and  .elegant,  and  we  must  be  as 
careful  of  the  whole  as  of  the  constituent  parts. 

123.  The  Plan From  the  fact  that  most  subjects 

require  more  extended  consideration  than  can  be  given 
in  one  paragraph,  it   is  usually  impossible  for  the  sub- 
ject matter  to  shape  itself  in  logical  order  as  it  comes 
to    the    mind.       Such    subjects    have    distinct    organic 
divisions  of  thought   which  are  indicated  by  paragraph 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  317 

divisions.  These  thought  divisions  are  not  a  mere 
aggregation  of  parts,  but  are  mutually  related  and  de- 
pendent, thereby  forming  an  organized  whole.  They 
must,  consequently,  be  considered  in  logical  order  with 
due  subordination  and  proportion  of  parts.  This  is  exactly 
what  we  found  to  be  true  in  the  case  of  the  paragraph, 
but  from  the  greater  length  of  the  whole  composition  it 
can  be  done  effectively  only  by  having  a  well-formed 
plan  of  work.  We  have  already  considered  the  outline 
as  an  aid  to  development ;  we  here  emphasize  the  im- 
portance of  an  orderly  arrangement  of  parts  in  effecting 
a  good  style.  Without  it  our  writing  will  lack  those 
literary  qualities  that  we  seek  to  acquire.  Occasionally 
an  author  may  write  in  a  methodical  way,  and  arrange 
the  order  of  his  work  as  he  goes  along ;  but  the  majority 
of  us  must  rely  on  some  kind  of  plan,  and  each  must  find 
his  own.  Some  kinds  of  discourse  lend  themselves  to 
orderly  arrangement  much  more  easily  than  others.  In 
narration,  for  instance,  the  plan  will  be  simple.  The 
arrangement  of  material  merely  follows  the  order'  of 
time.  In  description  the  order  of  objects  in  space  will 
be  followed  ;  but  in  exposition  and  argument  the  writer 
must  rely  for  his  plan  on  his  own  sense  of  logical 
arrangement. 

Some  suggestions  of  what  a  simple  plan  should  be 
have  been  made  on  pages  37  and  38.  The  following 
plans  will  be  further  suggestive  :  — 


318  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

THE  BOOKS  WE  READ. 
Introduction. 

1.  General  fondness  for  reading. 

(a)  We  see  things  as  they  are. 

(b)  Impossible  to  read  all  books. 

2.  Question  of  choice  governed  by  the  following 

considerations  : 

I.    Why  we  read. 

1.  A  mere  pastime. 

(a)    A  pleasant  change  from  other  things. 

2.  For  general  culture. 

(a)    For  conversation. 
(<£)    For  information. 

(c)  For  study. 

II.    What  to  read. 

1.  Books  that  afford  amusement. 

(a)    Books  that  are  interesting. 

(/>)    Books  that  appeal  to  our  feelings. 

2.  Books  that  are  instructive. 

(a)    Books  for  study. 

3.  Fiction. 

III.  How  to  read. 

1.  With  attention  to  substance  and  style. 

(a)    With  the  purpose  of  the  book  in  view. 
(I/)    Fault  of  inattentive  scanning. 

2.  With  the  idea  of  getting  good  ideas  and  food 

for  thought. 

(a)    With  pen   in  hand  to  take  notes  or  to 
copy  extracts. 

IV.  When  to  read. 

1.  When. the  mind  is  fresh. 

2.  In  spare  moments. 

3.  At  regular  times  for  study. 

Conclusion.     The  beneficial  effects  of  reading  good  books. 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  319 


IMPROVEMENTS  IN  LOCOMOTION. 
Introduction. 

i.    General  effects  of  improvements  in  locomotion 

in  promoting  civilization. 
(a)    By  facilitating  travel,  therehy   bringing 
people    together,    and    breaking  down 
national  barriers. 
(^)    By  aiding  commerce. 

I.    Earliest  forms  of  locomotion. 

1 .  Foot-travel. 

2.  Horseback. 

3.  Comfort  and  pleasure. 

(a)   Time  spent. 

(£)    Difficulties  encountered. 

II.    The  stage-coach. 

1.  When  introduced. 

2.  Description. 

(a)  Capacity  and  seating. 

(b)  Outfit  required. 

3.  Pleasant  and  unpleasant  features. 

4.  Improvements  over  former  methods. 

III.    The  introduction  of  steam. 

1.  Railroads. 

(a)  First  invention  of  locomotives. 

(£)  First  railroads. 

(t)  Locomotives  and  cars  of  to-day. 

(d)  Speed  attained. 

(e)  Comfort   and    pleasure  of   traveling   in- 

creased. 

2.  Steam  vessels. 

(a)  The  first  steamboat. 

(b)  Ocean  steamers. 
Advantages  over  sailing-vessels. 
Distributers  of  the   world's  productions. 


w 

a 


320  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

IV.    Latest  inventions  for  locomotion. 

1.  Cable  roads. 

2.  Electric  roads. 

3.  Automobiles. 

Conclusion.     The   beneficial  effects  of  all  inventions  for 
improving  the  methods  of  locomotion. 

124.     The  Introduction Whatever  the  plan  of  the 

work  may  be,  a  fundamental  element  of  it  is  the  introduc- 
tion. Just  what  form  it  should  take  depends  on  the  kind 
of  discourse.  It  should  not  begin  so  far  from  the  subject 
as  to  be  vague.  It  should  not  be  too  long  or  in  any  way 
disproportionate  to  the  rest  of  the  work  ;  but  it  should 
contain  whatever  is  necessary  to  make  a  proper  approach 
to  the  subject.  It  must  attract  and  fix  the  reader's  at- 
tention ;  it  must  put  him  in  touch  with  the  subject,  and 
in  more  pretentious  works  it  must,  to  some  extent,  dis- 
close the  method  of  treatment.  In  short  compositions 
of  one  or  two  paragraphs  a  single  sentence  calling  the 
reader's  attention  to  the  point  of  consideration  is  suffi- 
cient! Thus  in  a  recent  editorial  article  on  "  Outgrow- 
ing the  Constitution  "  the  writer  introduces  his  subject 
with  the  following  sentence  :  "  The  supposed  advantage 
of  a  written  constitution  as  a  basis  of  free  government 
is  that  it  will  have  supremacy,  stability,  and  permanence 
of  authority."  He  then  describes  in  turn  the  English 
constitution  and  the  constitution  of  the  United  States, 
contrasting  the  workings  of  the  two,  and  commenting 
to  some  extent  on  the  latter.  In  a  recent  magazine 
article  of  greater  length  the  writer  introduces  his  sub- 
ject; "  The  Simultaneous  Newspapers  of  the  Twentieth 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  321 

• 

Century,"  with  a  single  sentence,  as  follows  :  "  The 
comparatively  slight  progress  that  has  been  made  in  the 
development  of  the  newspaper  during  the  last  one  hun- 
dred years  inclines  one  to  the  belief  that  we  are  merely 
at  the  fringe  of  journalistic  development."  In  both  these 
cases  a  single  sentence  is  sufficient  to  put  the  reader  in 
touch  with  the  leading  thought  to  be  considered;  but  most 
magazine  articles  from  their  length  require  a  longer  and 
more  formal  introduction.  It  may  consist  of  one  para- 
graph or  even  more.  Thus  an  article,  entitled  "  In  the 
Engine-Room  of  a  War-Ship,"  begins  as  follows : 

"  Perhaps  the  points  on  which  the  average  reader  of 
naval  service  literature  has  the  greatest  curiosity,  are  those 
which  are  nearly  always  overlooked  by  the  writers  in  this 
line.  These  points  relate  to  the  duties  which  in  actual 
service  the  officers  and  men  of  the  Engineer  Division  are 
called  upon  to  perform." 

A  writer  on  "  The  Paris  Exposition  "  begins  with  a  quo- 
tation from  the  Commissioner-General  of  the  Exposition  : 

"The  Universal  Exposition  of  1900  should  be  the  phi- 
losophy and  synthesis  of  the  century  ;  it  should  have  at 
once  grandeur,  grace,  and  beauty ; .  it  should  reflect  the 
bright  genius  of  France  ;  it  should  demonstrate  that  to- 
day, as  in  the  past,  we  are  in  the  van  of  progress ;  it 
should  honor  the  century  and  the  Republic,  and  show  to 
the  world  that  we  are  the  worthy  sons  of  the  men  of 
1789." 

An  apt  quotation  or  a  well-told  anecdote  will  often 
make  a  most  effective  introduction. 


322  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

If  the  discourse  is  narrative  or  descriptive,  it  is  suffi- 
cient for  the  introduction  to  define  simply  the  setting, 
in  time  or  in  space.  Irving's  sketches  afford  excellent 
examples  of  introductions  to  both  these  forms.  In  emo- 
tional discourse,  the  introduction  must  arouse  interest 
and  overcome  prejudice.  The  opening  of  St.  Paul's 
speech  to  the  Athenians,  in  the  seventeenth  chapter  of 
the  Acts,  will  be  remembered  at  once.  In  argumenta- 
tive and  expository  works  the  introduction  must  set  forth 
with  some  completeness  the  point  of  view  and  the  man- 
ner of  treatment  of  the  subject.  Thus  ex- President 
Harrison,  writing  on  "  The  Status  of  Annexed  Territory 
and  of  its  Free  Civilized  Inhabitants,"  begins  as  follows  : 

"  A  legal  argument  on  this  subject  is  quite  outside  of 
my  purpose,  which  is  to  consider,  in  a  popular,  rather 
than  a  professional,  way,  some  of  the  questions  that  arise, 
some  of  the  answers  proposed,  and  some  of  the  objections 
to  these  answers." 

A  cursory  study  of  any  of  the  magazines  or  books  at 
hand  will  furnish  plenty  of  examples  of  good  introduc- 
tions ;  but  it  is  to  be  noted  that,  whatever  the  form  of 
the  introduction,  it  should  contribute  to  the  unity  and 
coherence  of  the  whole  work. 

125.  The  Conclusion.  —  The  final  element  of  a  good 
plan  is  the  conclusion.  Most  writers  desire  either  to 
emphasize  what  they  have  already  said,  or  to  round  out 
their  work  gracefully  so  as  to  leave  a  good  impression 
on  the  mind  of  the  reader.  Just  how  this  shall  be  done 
depends  on  the  kind  of  discourse.  As  a  general  rule, 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  323 

the  conclusion  should  be  as  brief  as  possible.  A  formal 
conclusion  is  not  essential.  The  writer  may  stop  when 
he  has  said  what  he  has  to  say  ;  indeed,  it  is  a  merit  to 
stop  when  interest  in  the  subject  ends,  and  the  reader 
has  nothing  more  to  expect.  A  single  happy  turn  of 
expression  will  answer  in  this  case.  Such  may  be  the 
conclusion  of  simple  narration  and  description.  In 
stories  it  may  be  abrupt  and  suggestive,  but  it  must 
suggest  something  with  which  the  reader  is  familiar. 
This  is  a  device  frequently  adopted  by  Kipling.  In 
emotional  discourse  the  conclusion  may  gather  into  it- 
self the  spirit  of  the  discourse  and  apply  it  to  life  and 
conduct.  In  intellectual  discourse  it  gathers  the  threads 
of  thought,  or  summarizes  the  arguments  so  as  to  leave 
on  the  mind  of  the  reader  a  distinct  impression  of  the 
purpose  of  the  work.  The  formal  conclusion  must  con- 
duce to  unity  and  emphasis.  It  must  concentrate  the 
thought  which  the  body  of  the  work  necessarily  tends  to 
diversify,  and  enforce  it  on  the  mind  of  the  reader. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  give  an  extended  list  of  con- 
clusions for  illustration.  Like  the  introduction,  the 
nature  and  appropriateness  of  the  conclusion  may  be 
readily  understood  by  reference  to  the  various  maga- 
zine articles  at  hand. 

126.  The  Principles  of  Style  Applied  to  the  Compo- 
sition. —  Enough  has  already  been  said  to  indicate  that 
the  principles  that  govern  well-constructed  sentences 
and  paragraphs  are  precisely  those  that  govern  the  whole 
composition.  All  three  are  alike  in  their  general  nature. 


324  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Each  is  an  organized  whole,  made  up  of  parts  mutually 
related  and  dependent.  It  makes  no  difference  whether 
a  writing  be  short  or  long,  whether  it  be  a  single  sen- 
tence, a  single  paragraph,  or  many  paragraphs,  its 
several  parts  must  be  combined  on  the  same  principles. 
It  must  be  a  unit,  the  parts  must  be  logically  arranged 
and  their  relation  shown,  and  each  must  receive  its 
due  proportion  of  treatment  and  proper  emphasis. 

i .  Unity.  —  It  is  as  important  that  a  series  of  para- 
graphs forming  a  whole  composition  should  have  unity 
as  that  the  paragraph  should  have  that  quality.  What 
constitutes  unity  in  the  composition  is  often  a  matter  of 
delicate  artistic  judgment.  Ordinarily  there  must  be 
unity  of  subject  matter  as  well  as  of  form  and  method 
of  treatment.  The  subject  itself  must  be  so  limited  as 
to  suggest  one  line  of  thought  only.  It  is  manifestly 
absurd  to  attempt  to  write  on  such  general  subjects  as 
11  Nature  "  or  "  Animals."  The  utter  indefiniteness  of 
such  subjects  precludes  all  notion  of  unity.  With  a 
limited  subject  we  may  hope  to  make  each  paragraph 
and  each  sentence  bear  some  definite  relation  to  the 
single  impression  which  the  composition  is  to  make. 
The  material  having  been  gathered,  the  problem  is 
simply  one  of  selection.  If  we  make  proper  choice  of 
the  material  at  hand,  and  treat  each  phase  of  the  subject 
with  the  proper  degree  of  fullness,  our  composition  will 
have  unity.  If  we  digress  into  other  lines  of  thought 
which  the  subject  may  remotely  suggest,  if  we  introduce 
extraneous  matter>  or  if  we  do  not  sufficiently  develop 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  325 

the  necessary  topics,  our  work  will  lack  unity.  The 
best  way  to  secure  this  quality  is  to  have  a  plan  of  our 
work  for  reference. 

2.  Coherence.  —  Coherence  is  an  essential  quality  in 
any  composition.  It  is  precisely  analogous  to  coherence 
in  the  paragraph,  and  is  a  question  of  proper  arrange- 
ment. If  we  have  arranged  our  material,  more  espe- 
cially our  paragraphs,  in  logical  order,  and  have  been 
careful  to  suggest  the  connection  of  part  to  part,  our 
composition  will  have  coherence.  Our  plan  will  be  the 
best  help  to  a  logical  arrangement,  while  the  relation 
between  the  parts  may  be  indicated  by  the  use  of  con- 
necting words,  or  by  the  repetition  of  words  and  phrases. 

To  secure  cohesion  in  the  composition  the  connection 
of  thought  from  paragraph  to  paragraph  must  be  care- 
fully considered.  As  the  reader  must  be  led  naturally 
and  logically  from  point  to  point,  the  several  paragraphs 
must  sustain  a  relation  to  one  another  much  like  that 
of  the  links  in  a  chain.  The  transition  must  be  gradual, 
and  never  so  abrupt  as  to  confuse  or  shock  the  reader. 
The  topic  discussed  in  any  paragraph  should  be  such 
as  the  preceding  paragraph  would  naturally  suggest. 
The  repetition  in  the  introductory  sentence  of  some 
clause  or  phrase  from  the  concluding  sentence  of  the 
preceding  paragraph,  the  employment  of  some  expression 
that  calls  to  mind  the  thought  of  that  paragraph,  or 
the  use  of  some  connecting  word  such  as  this,  that, 
these,  those,  however,  consequently,  therefore,  etc.,  will 
suggest  the  paragraph-relation,  carrying  the  thought 


326  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

easily  from  one  to  the  other.  An  examination  of  any 
well  written  article  in  a  magazine  or  book  will  show  how 
careful  the  writer  has  been  to  indicate  the  connection 
of  thought  from  paragraph  to  paragraph. 

3.  Empliasis  and  Proportion.  —  Emphasis  in  the 
whole  composition,  as  in  the  paragraph,  requires  that 
important  topics  should  occupy  important  places.  The 
most  important  place  is  at  the  end  ;  for  here  the  mind  of 
the  reader,  having  become  centered  on  the  thought,  and 
attuned  to  the  spirit  of  the  discourse,  receives  its  lasting 
and  naturally  strongest  impression.  In  serious  discourse 
of  an  expository  or  argumentative  nature  the  emphatic 
arrangement  will  be  that  which  puts  the  most  important 
topic  last. 

The  length  of  treatment  of  the  several  topics  depends 
on  their  importance.  Unimportant  matters  that  can  be 
left  to  the  reader's  own  knowledge  or  imagination  should 
be  passed  over  rapidly.  Important  matters  must  receive 
extended  consideration,  dependent  on  the  length  of  the 
composition.  In  an  essay  of  one  thousand  words  no 
topic  can  receive  as  full  consideration  as  in  one  of  four 
or  five  thousand  words.  Therefore  in  applying  the 
principle  of  proportion  to  our  composition  we  must  be 
governed  by  the  importance  of  the  several  topics  and 
the  space  at  our  command. 

EXERCISES. 

i .    How  should  you  describe  the  relation  of  a  composi- 
tion to  its  several  parts  ?     Explain  how  the  same  principles 
-  of  style  apply  equally  well  to  the  several  parts  of  the  com- 


THE    WHOLE   COMPOSITION.  327 

position  and  to  the  whole.  For  what  purpose  are  these 
principles  applied  ?  How  far  will  due  attention  to  the 
choice  of  words,  to  well-constructed  sentences  and  para- 
graphs, contribute  to  a  well-constructed  composition  as  a 
whole  ?  What  further  attention  is  necessary  ? 

2.  Why  is  a  definite  plan  for   a  composition   helpful? 
Why  is  it  not  possible  to  rely  on  natural  expression  for  an 
orderly  treatment  of  any  subject  ?     What  do  you  under^ 
stand  by  organic   divisions  of  thought  ?     What  must  be 
true    of  them  if  they  are  to  form  an  organized  whole  \ 
Upon  what  general  line  should  you  make  a  plan  for  each 
of  the  four  kinds  of  discourse  ?^ 

3.  Choose  five  of  the  following  subjects,  and  make  a 
plan  for  each  suitable  for  a  composition  of  300,  400,  or 
500  words. 

1.  National  Sports.  7.   The   Development   of 

2.  Longfellow's   Evangc-  the  Electric  Car. 

line.  8.    A  Summer  Camp. 

3.  Inventions  of  the  Nine-  9.    Irving's       Rip       Van 

teenth  Century.  Winkle. 

4.  How  to  Sail  a  Boat.  10.   The  Uses  of  Copper. 

5.  The  Value  of  an  Edu-  n.    Are  Labor  Strikes  Jus- 

cation,  tifiable? 

6.  Life  on  a  Farm.  12.    Is  the  Giving  of  Prizes 

in  School  Desirable? 

4.  Select  four  articles  from  papers  or  magazines,  make 
a  plan   of   each,  bring    to   the   class,  and  comment  upon 
them  with  reference  to  orderly  arrangement.      Make  any 
suggestions  that  you  think  will  improve  the  plan.     Justify 
or    criticise    the    plans    of    the    several    compositions    in 
Appendix  C. 

5.  In  what    kinds    of  writing    should  you   expect    the 
simplest  introduction  ?     In  what,  the  most  formal  ?     What 
general  directions  should  you  give   for  an   introduction  ? 
For   a    conclusion  ?      What    purpose    does    each    serve  ? 
Write  suitable  introductions  and  conclusions  for  the  five 
subjects   chosen    under   exercise   3.      Show  how  each    is 
appropriate  to  its  subject.     Bring  to  the  class  a  number 


328  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

of  introductions  and  conclusions  of  articles  in  the  maga- 
zines, and  show  how  each  is  appropriate  to  the  article  in 
question. 

6.  How   should  you    define   unity  as   applied  to    the 
whole    composition  ?       Describe    briefly   how   it    may  be 
attained.      Why    is    it    impossible    to    preserve    unity    in 
writing  on  general  subjects  ?     How  should  you  apply  the 
principle  of  coherence  to  a   composition  ?     Explain   the 
importance  of  good  paragraph  connection,  and  show  how 
it  may  be  attained. 

7.  How  should  you   apply  the  principles  of  emphasis 
and  proportion  to  a  composition?     In  the  articles  which 
you   have   examined   from    papers  and    magazines,    have 
the  authors  applied  these  principles  to  good  advantage  ? 
If  so,  show  how.     If  not,  criticise  the  articles  with  refer- 
ence to  these  principles. 

8.  For  each  of  the  subjects  which  you  chose  under 
exercise  3  make  a  plan  for  a  composition  of  1000  to  1500 
words. 


FORMS   OF  LITERATURE.  32< 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

FORMS    OF    LITERATURE    AND    METHODS    OF    TREATMENT. 

127.  The  Forms  of  Discourse.  —  We  have  seen  in 
Chapter  XI.  that  writings  are  arbitrarily  divided  into 
several  groups  according  to  the  nature  of  the  subject 
matter.  In  this  chapter  we  shall  discuss  the  forms  c  f 
discourse  as  grouped  in  two  classes  according  to  the 
mode  of  literary  treatment.  Considering  briefly  the 
several  literary  forms  of  which  Chapter  XI.  treats,  we 
may  say  that,  in  general,  exposition  and  argumentation 
are  forms  requiring  full  statement  of  what  the  writer 
wishes  the  reader  to  know,  and  that  the  other  three  — 
description,  narration,  and  criticism  —  are  forms  in  which 
the  author  should  suggest  more  than  he  tells.  That 
there  is  some  such  broad  natural  division  of  all  writing, 
on  the  basis  of  the  sort  of  thinking  involved,  is  at  least 
suggested  by  the  fact  that,  while  sometimes  one  man  is 
in  a  degree  .master  of  the  various  forms,  it  is  generally 
true  that  a  writer  who  is  especially  skillful  in  the  first 
two  is  distinctly  less  so  in  the  other  three,  and  vice 
versa.  Webster  could  explain  and  convince,  but  it 
would  be  difficult  to  think  of  his  succeeding  equally  well 
in  the  art  of  the  novelist.  Thackeray  delights  us 
with  work  in  description,  narration,  and  criticism,  but 


330  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

in  him  no  one  would  expect  to  find  excellence  in  exposi- 
tion or  argumentation.  George  Eliot  could,  perhaps,  be 
great  in  all  forms. 

128.  The  Literature  of  Full  Statement. —  Exposition 
assumes  that  the  reader  does  not  understand  that  which 
is  to  be  explained,  and  it  should  generally  assume  that 
the  reader's  interest  will  not  be  so  high,  or  his  enjoy- 
ment of  the  explanation  so  great,  that  he  will  make  the 
effort  to  fill  out  details  that  the  writer  omits.  If  the 
exposition  is  to  be  clear,  it  must  reduce  this  effort  to  the 
lowest  point  possible.  In  argumentation  this  is  even 
more  important.  The  assumption  in  all  argumentation 
is  that  the  reader  is  to  be  convinced  of  a  truth  or  a 
conclusion  to  which  he  does  not  give  assent,  and  which, 
quite  probably,  he  is  unwilling  to  accept.  Evidently, 
then,  it  will  not  be  sufficient  merely  to  make  it  possible 
for  the  reader  to  follow  the  meaning  and  reach  the 
desired  conclusion.  The  purpose  of  the  writer  being  to 
convince  the  reader  against  his  will,  he  must  not  leave  out 
any  detail  of  the  course  of  the  argument,  he  must  not 
trust  the  reader  to  see  the  dependence  of  one  thought 
upon  another  for  himself,  he  must  not  make  assertions 
which  the  reader  may  question.  It  is  also  as  important 
to  state  facts  which  the  reader  may  be  supposed  to  know, 
if  they  bear  upon  the  question,  as  those  of  which  he  is 
ignorant.  Definitely  brought  to  notice,  they  are  especially 
effective,  since  there  will  be  no  inclination  to  dispute 
them  :  left  for  the  reader  to  supply,  they  may  not  be 
thought  of,  since  at  the  best  he  is  not  trying  to  reach 


FORMS  OF  LITERATURE.  331 

the  conclusion  at  which  the  author  aims,  and  the  omis- 
sion may  invalidate  the  argument.  Exposition  and 
argumentation,  then,  are  forms  of  discourse  in  which,  in 
addition  to  the  fundamental  necessity  of  unity,  coherence, 
and  clearness,  it  is  important  to  state  everything,  and 
leave  nothing  to  the  assisting  intelligence  of  the  reader. 
129.  The  Literature  of  Suggestion. — When  one  takes 
up  a  novel  it  is  with  the  express  purpose  and  expectation 
of  getting  pleasure  out  of  the  reading.  It  is  not  sup- 
posed that  a  story  is  written  either  to  instruct  or  to 
convince,  and  the  reader  is  therefore  at  once  in  an 
attitude  of  cooperation  with  the  writer.  Wishing  to  be 
pleased,  he  is  ready  to  make  the  most  of  the  author's 
words.  A  mere  hint  reveals  to  him  the  character  of  an 
'actor  in  the  story  ;  a  simple  incident  briefly  told  or  a 
chance  conversation  makes  known  to  him  other  things 
that  are  not  directly  recounted.  And  again,  as  narrative 
does  not  involve  reasoning  processes  so  much  as  does  ex- 
position or  argumentation,  the  mind  is  more  free  to  make 
independent  deductions  and  to  reach  independent  con- 
clusions. These  considerations  hold  with  even  more 
force  in  the  case  of  descriptive  writing.  Technical 
description,  it  is  true,  requires  full  statement,  but  techni- 
cal and  literary  description  have  different  purposes.  In 
the  one  it  is  important  to  write  with  such  fullness  of 
details  as  will  make  the  reader  know  the  thing  described 
with  some  exactness  ;  in  literary  description  the  writer 
wishes  to  reproduce  for  the  reader  the  general  impression 
of  the  thing  described,  and  for  this  purpose  one  or  two 


332  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

details  may  be  more  effective  than  full  statement.  The 
details  chosen  should,  of  course,  be  such  as  will  be  sug- 
gestive of  other  things  in  the  picture. 

"  I  took  up  the  candle-sticks  and  went  before  them,  steps 
that  I  would  have  given  my  hand  to  recall ;  but  a  coward 
is  a  slave  at  the  best,  and  even  as  I  went,  my  teeth  smote 
each  other  in  my  mouth.  It  was  as  he  had  said ;  there 
was  no  breath  stirring ;  a  windless  stricture  of  frost  had 
bound  the  air;  and  as  we  went  forth  in-the  shine  of  the 
candles,  the  blackness  was  a  roof  over  our  heads.  Never 
a  word  was  said ;  there  was  never  a  sound  but  the  creak- 
ing of  our  steps  along  the  frozen  path.  The  cold  of  the 
night  fell  about  me  like  a  bucket  of  water ;  I  shook  as  I 
went  with  more  than  terror ;  but  my  companions,  bare- 
headed like  myself  and  fresh  from  the  warm  hall,  appeared 
not  even  conscious  of  the  change. 

" '  Here  is  the  place,'  said  the  Master ;  « set  down  the 
candles  1  ' 

"  I  did  as  he  bade  me,  and  presently  the  flames  went 

up,  as  steady  as  in  a  chamber,  in  the  midst  of  the  frosted 

trees,  and  I  beheld  the  two  brothers  take  their  places." 

ROBERT  Louis  STEVENSON:  The  Master  of  Ballantrae. 

Here  the  "  windless  stricture  of  frost,"  the  blackness 
overhead,  and  the  flames  of  the  candles  going  up  "  steady 
as  in  a  chamber,"  are  suggestive  of  the  other  details  of  the 
picture,  and  of  the  feeling  which  all  these  things  are  to 
emphasize.  More  than  that,  they  are  all  such  as  to  unite 
into  the  one  impression  of  the  hush  of  fear  that  settled 
upon  the  three  men  going  out  into  the  night  to  the  duel. 
Good  literary  description  always  suggests  more  than  it 
tells  directly,  and  by  the  vividness  with  which  the  details 
chosen  are  presented  makes  these  potential  of  the  whole. 


FORMS  OF  LITERATURE.  333 

We  hardly  realize  that  this  from  Stevenson  is  description, 
so  few  are  the  items  of  the  picture  that  are  definitely 
given  us,  and  yet,  in  all  literature  it  would  be  hard  to 
find  many  examples  of  scene-painting  of  which  the  im- 
pression is  equally  vivid  and  lasting. 

130.  Criticism. —  Criticism  involves  exposition,  and 
in  a  degree  argumentation  ;  but  criticism  of  the  better 
sort  endeavors  in  a  measure  to  reproduce  the  tone  of  the 
work  criticised.  Apart  from  the  use  of  direct  quotation, 
this  can  be  accomplished  only  by  such  felicities  of  state- 
ment and  of  phrasing  as  will  suggest  more  than  the 
critical  conclusions  to  which  the  writer  comes.  So  it  is 
in  the  following  :  — 

With  few  exceptions,  then,  his  most  poetical  types  of 
men  and  women  are  not  substantial  beings,  but  beautiful 
shadows,  which  like  the  phantoms  of  a  stereopticon,  dis- 
solve if  you  examine  them  too  long  and  closely.  His 
knights  are  the  old  bequest  of  chivalry,  yet  how  stalwart 
and  picturesque  !  His  early  ideals  of  women  are  cathe- 
dral paintings,  —  scarcely  flesh  and  blood,  but  certain  at- 
tributes personified  and  made  angelical.  Where  a  story 
has  been  made  for  him  he  is  more  dramatic.  Arthur, 
Lancelot,  Merlin,  Guinevere,  are  strong,  wise,  or  beautiful, 
and  so  we  find  them  in  the  chronicle  from  which  the  poet 
drew  his  legend.  He  has  advanced  them  to  the  require- 
ments of  modern  Christianity,  yet  hardly  created  them 
anew.  It  is  not  improbable  that  Tennyson  may  force 
himself  to  compose  some  notably  dramatic  work ;  but  only 
through  skill  and  strength  of  purpose,  in  this  age,  and  with 
his  habit  of  life.  In  a  dramatic  period  he  might  find  him- 
self as  sadly  out  of  place  as  Beddoes,  Darley,  Landor,  have 
been  in  his  own  century.  By  sheer  good  fortune  he  has 
flourished  in  a  time  calling  for  tenderness,  thought,  excel- 


334  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

lent  workmanship,  and  not  for  wild  extremes  of  power. 
So  chaste,  varied,  and  tuneful  are  his  notes,  that  they  are 
scornfully  compared  to  piano-music,  in  distinction  from 
what  he  himself  has  entitled  the  "  God-gifted  organ  voice 
of  England."  Take,  however,  the  piano  as  an  instru- 
mental expression  of  recent  musical  taste,  and  see  to  what 
a  height  of  execution,  of  capacity  to  give  almost  universal 
pleasure,  the  art  of  playing  it  has  been  carried.  A  great 
pianist  is  a  great  artist ;  and  it  is  no  light  fame  which 
holds,  with  relation  to  poetry,  the  supremacy  awarded  to 
Liszt  or  Schumann  by  the  refined  musicians  of  our  time. 
EDMUND  C.  STEDMAN  :  Victorian  Poets. 

Observe  that  this  leads  up  to  the  comparison  of 
Tennyson's  poetry  with  piano-music,  a  comparison  that 
is  meant  to  realize  for  the  reader  some  of  the  charac- 
teristics of  Tennyson's  verse  through  the  aid  of  his 
imagination,  and  that  will  be  more  or  less  effective  ac- 
cording to  the  number  of  artistic  qualities  which  piano- 
music  suggests. 

131.  The  Sources  of  Pleasure  in  Literature A  con- 
gressional report  or  a  treatise  on  some  mathematical  or 
scientific  subject  may  give  pleasure,  each  to  its  special 
class  of  readers,  but  no  one  of  these  writings  would  be 
literature.  For  the  pleasure  which  literature  gives  we 
shall,  then,  disregard  the  natural  interest  of  the  sub- 
ject itself.  Turning  to  other  considerations,  we  may 
discern  two  principal  sources  of  pleasure  in  writing  that 
makes  pretense  to  literary  character.  It  is  a  natural 
instinct  of  the  mind  to  enjoy  the  logical  and  orderly 
presentation  of  thought.  The  sense  of  novelty,  such  as 
results  when  related  facts  are  shown  in  their  relation, 


FORMS  OF  LITERATURE.  335 

and  a  definite  conclusion  is  reached  in  consequence,  is 
an  element  of  our  pleasure  in  most  things  that  we  enjoy  ; 
and  this  is  the  source  of  our  pleasure  in  the  literature 
of  full  statement.  We  are  interested  in  anything  that 
in  part  explains  for  us  the  world  in  which  we  live,  and 
every  reasoned-out  conclusion  helps  towards  such  ex- 
planation ;  but  aside  from  this  the  mere  sense  of  orderly 
arrangement  is  in  itself  intellectually  satisfying.  When 
subjects  that  are  properly  of  concern  to  man's  higher  in- 
terests are  thus  presented  in  logical  order  the  product 
may  have  for  us  the  appeal  of  literature. 

We  have  pleasure  in  a  composition  when  in  some 
fashion  it  stimulates  the  mind  to  greater  activity.  Our 
purpose  in  reading  is  to  experience  new  thoughts  and 
emotions,  and  when  a  book  quickens  our  imagination 
and  makes  us  alive  with  new  feelings  which  seem  to  us 
spontaneous  and  original,  we  feel  a  deeper  interest  in  it 
than  we  do  in  one  which  states  fully  all  that  it  gives  to 
us.  In  general  the  literature  of  suggestion  appeals  more 
effectively  to  our  aesthetic  sense  and  is  the  more  artistic. 
Even  exposition  and  argumentation  gain  in  literary  ap- 
peal, when,  in  addition  to  the  orderly  development  of  the 
subject,  there  are  suggestions  that  kindle  the  imagina- 
tion to  a  cooperating  activity.  If  these  can  in  some 
fashion  be  made  to  touch  upon  the  personal  interests  or 
personal  experiences  of  those  whom  the  writer  addresses, 
there  will  be  a  great  gain  in  effectiveness.  Before  pre- 
senting the  considerations  that  in  the  minds  of  his  audi- 
tors will,  as  he  hopes,  make  for  the  view  he  holds,  a 


336  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

,  skillful  advocate  will  often  bring  up  related  matters 
which  should  engage  the  feelings,  and  suggest  things 
that  give  the  discussion  a  more  personal  color  and 
meaning.  When  to  the  intellectual  interest  of  a  well- 
ordered  treatment  such  emotional  interest  is  added,  the 
compelling  power  of  the  composition  is  greatly  in- 
creased. 

EXERCISES. 

1.  Read  the  selection  from  Harriet  Prescott  Spofford, 
page  241,  and  say  whether  the  second  sentence  tells  or 
suggests  something.     Do  you  get  anything  more  than  fact 
from  "  and  see  it  draw  a  film  across  the  stars  "  ?     If  so, 
what  ?     Are  the  further  details  of  the  description  interest- 
ing simply  in  themselves,  or  because  they  are  suggestive 
of  elemental  forces  that  transcend  human  experience  ?  Is 
it  the  dream  or  the  reality  that  makes  the  region  such  as 
to  appeal  to  the  fancy  of  poets  and  singers  ?    Is  this  then, 
an  example  of  the   literature  of  full  statement,  or  of  the 
literature  of  suggestion  ? 

2.  To  which  of  the  divisions  of  literature  considered 
in    this    chapter    do    the    selections    from    the    following 
authors    belong  ?      Jordan,    page    211;     Bushnell,    2x2  £** 

Fernald,    144;   Choate^^;  Norton,   76  ; 


I26'  Ruskin>  I23  J 

3".  Bring  to  class  a  paragraph  or  more  of  v  exposi- 
tion or  argumentation,  which  through  the  color  and  life 
of  its  diction  or  through  some  other  quality,  seems  to 
you  to  be  in  a  degree  suggestive  of  more  than  is  directly 
stated. 

4.  In  the  following  lines  from  Browning's  "  Prospice  " 
//  $  what  do  you  understand  by  "  the  fog,"  "  the  mist,"  "  the 
snows,"  "the  place,"  "the  power  of  the  night,"  "the 
Arch  Fear  "  ?  Write  out  a  connected  statement  of  your 
understanding  of  the  lines. 


FORMS   OF  LITERATURE.  337 

Fear  death  ?  —  to  feel  the  fog  in  my  throat, 

The  mist  in  my  face, 
When  the  snows  begin,  and  the  blasts  denote 

I  am  nearing  the  place, 
The  power  of  the  night,  the  press  of  the  storm, 

The  post  of  the  foe  ; 
Where  he  stands,  the  Arch  Fear  in  a  visible  form, 

Yet  the  strong  man  must  go : 
For  the  journey  is  done  and  the  summit  attained, 

And  the  barriers  fall, 
Though  a  battle's  to  fight  ere  the  guerdon  be  gained, 

The  reward  of  it  all. 

5.  Are  the  following  poems  characterized  by  full  state- 
ment or  by  suggestion  ?     "  The  Splendor  Falls,"  from  Part 

,»   IV.  of  Tennyson's  "  Princess."     (See  note  in  edition  in 
Jr    \Cambridge  Literature  Series.)    Wordsworth's  "Stepping 

Westward,"  Keats's  "  On  First  Looking  into  Chapman's  j^\ 
Homer,"  Dry  den's  "  Aldxan'derVFeasfT'"" 

6.  Should  a  writing  give  pleasure  or.  not,  if  it  is  to  be 
ranked  as  literature  ?     How  does  literature  give  pleasure  ? 


338  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

FIGURATIVE    LANGUAGE. 

132.  The  Use  of  Figures Figurative  language  is 

the  employment  of  words  or  phrases  in  other  than  their 
exact  meanings,  as  in  speaking  of  a  ship  as  a  sail,  or  in 
applying  such  an  adjective  as  rough  to  something  not 
having  material  substance,  a  rough  voyage.  In  a  fig- 
ure of  speech,  or  trope,  a  word  is  turned  from  its  literal 
sense  for  other  use  of  a  like  kind.  When  we  speak  of 
a  heavy  heart  we  are  using  the  word  heavy  in  a  figura- 
tive sense.  So  when  we  speak  of  depressing  thoughts 
the  word  depressing  is  used  out  of  its  literal  signifi- 
cation. In  our  thought  we  associate  unpleasant  things 
with  the  sense  of  physical  depression  ;  and  so  when 
the  words  heavy  and  depressing  are  applied  to  other 
than  material  things  we  take  out  of  the  full  meaning 
of  the  words  only  what  we  may  call  the  type  meaning 
of  unpleasantness,  a  figurative  use  of  the  words,  since  at 
first  heaviness  and  depression  must  have  referred  to 
material  substance  and  weight.  Such  words  have  by 
long  use  come  to  have  the  figurative  meaning  so  bound 
up  with  the  literal  that  we  can  hardly  separate  them, 
but  often  the  distinction  is  readily  made. 

In  the  first  verse  of  the  twenty-third  psalm  we  have 


FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  339 

what  we  may  take  as  a  typically  good  figure,  "  The  Lord 
is  my  shepherd ;  I  shall  not  want."  The  shepherd  is 
perhaps  the  best  possible  type  of  loving  watchfulness 
and  care,  and  the  mind  at  once  picks  out  this  quality  as 
the  one  which  is  here  to  be  understood.  It  is  a  charac- 
teristic so  striking  in  the  shepherd  as  almost  to  exclude 
other  characteristics,  thus  intensifying  our  understanding 
of  it  in  the  metaphor.  Dignity  and  loftiness  of  charac- 
ter in  a  man  may  be  made  more  real  by  likening  him  to 
a  cedar  of  Lebanon  ;  and  the  mmd,  feeling  at  once  the 
majesty  of  the  cedar,  would  not  accept  any  other  com- 
parison, although  the  man  and  the  cedar  might  have 
some  other  quality  in  like  degree.  If  anything  has  come 
to  be  the  type  of  some  particular  quality  or  character,  as 
the  violet  of  modesty,  it  can  be  used  effectively  in  the 
simile  or  metaphor  'only  for  the  purpose  of  making  us 
see  in  something  else  the  quality  or  character  which  it 
types.  But  we  do  not  think  of  everything  as  a  type 
of  some  specific  quality  or  character,  and  things  of 
which  we  do  not  so  think  may  serve  through  their  use 
in  simile  and  metaphor  to  intensify  any  one  of  a  number 
of  qualities. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  always  that  figures  should  be 
employed  only  for  the  purpose  of  making  the  meaning 
clearer  or  more  vivid  and  suggestive.  We  have  seen 
that  concrete  and  particular  terms  are  more  emotionally 
appealing  than  abstract  and  general  terms,  and  figures 
are  often  used  to  present  the  general  and  abstract  under 
the  form  of  something  concrete  and  particular.  Figures 


340  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

that  serve  merely  to  adorn  or  embellish  a  composition 
are  out  of  place,  and  those  which  give  the  reader  sur- 
prise in  discovering  a  hitherto  unknown  likeness  be- 
tween two  objects  are  of  questionable  literary  value. 

y/,133.    Simile    and/^Ietaphor Although    figurative 

^language  takes  many  forms  in  literature,  we  need  con- 
sider only  the  few  that  are  most  frequently  used.  Simile 
and  metaphor  are  the  two  most  common  figures  of 
speech.  They  are  figures  of  comparison  ;  that  is,  they 
point  out  a  resemblance  between  two  things  differing  in 
kind,  the  value  of  the  figure  depending  on  the  degree  of 
resemblance  or  on  the  degree  of  subtle  suggestion  in- 
volved. When  the  resemblance  is  expressed  in  full  by 
means  of  like,  as,  or  some  such  word,  the  figure  is  a 
simile.  For  example,  we  say,  "His  hair  is  as  yellow 
as  gold,"  or,  "  Blue  were  her  eyes  as  the  fairy-flax." 
When  the  resemblance  is  implied,  the  figure  is  a  meta- 
phor. The  simile  and  the  metaphor  are,  therefore, 
essentially  alike,  the  metaphor  implying  what  the  simile 
definitely  expresses.  Any  simile  may  be  contracted 
into  a  metaphor,  and  any  metaphor  may  be  expanded 
into  a  simile.  In  the  metaphor  one  thing  is  spoken  of 
under  the  name  of  another,  and  if  the  figure  be  extended 
into  a  story  it  becomes  a  fable  or  an  allegory.  Examples 
of  metaphor  are  the  following  : 

Wit  is  a  dangerous  weapon. 

Aloft  on  sky  and  mountain  wall 
Are  God's  great  pictures  hung. 


FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  341 

Bunyan's  "  Pilgrim's  Progress  "  and  Spenser's  "  Faerie 
Queene  "  are  allegories. 

Both  simile  and  metaphor  are  easily  suggested.  Their 
number  is  limited  only  by  the  number  of  objects  in  the 
universe  that  are  more  or  less  alike.  They  should  not 
be  used  for  ornament  merely,  and  should  grow  naturally 
out  of  the  subject.  Neither  figure  should  be  carried  too 
far,  and  great  care  should  be  taken  not  to  confuse  differ- 
ent similes  or  metaphors  in  the  same  sentence.  Mixture 
of  metaphor  is  a  serious  fault,  as  may  be  seen  from  the 
following  examples  :  — 

We  must  keep  the  ball  rolling  until  it  becomes  a  thorn 
in  the  side  of  Congress. 

Mr.  Speaker,  I   smell  a  rat,  I   see  him  floating  in  the 
air  ;  but  mark  me,  sir,  I  will  nip  him  in  the  bud. 

134.  Personification.  —  Personification  consists  in  giv- 
ing   life   and  personality  to   inanimate   objects.      Some 
little  emotion   is  needed   in  the  writing  to  warrant  the 
use  of  this  figure.     Examples:  — 

Sport  that  wrinkled  Care  derides, 
And  Laughter  holding  both  his  sides. 

MILTON  :  L*  Allegro. 

Let  not  Ambition  mock  their  useful  toil, 

Their  homely  joys  and  destiny  obscure ; 
Nor  Grandeur  hear  with  a  disdainful  smile 
The  short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor. 
/,  s  GRAY:   The  Elegy. 

135.  Synecdoche  and  metonymy. —  Synecdoche  and 
metonymy  may  be  regarded   as  figures  of   relationship. 


342  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

They  are  nearly  alike.  Synecdoche  consists  in  using 
a  specific  for  a  general  term,  an  individual  for  a  species, 
a  part  for  a  whole,  or  vice  versa.  Examples  :  — 

Some  mute,  inglorious  Milton  here  may  rest. 

Consider  the  lilies  how  they  grow ;  they  toil  not,  they 
spin  not;  yet  I  say  unto  you,  that  Solomon  in  all  his 
glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of  these. 

Metonymy,  like  synecdoche,  consists  in  the  use  of  one 
thing  for  something  else  ;  the  relationship,  however,  is 
not  that  of  a  part  to  a  whole,  but  of  cause  to  effect,  of 
instrument  to  agent,  of  material  to  the  thing  made,  or 
some  other  relation  such  that  the  one  will  readily  sug- 
gest the  other.  We  speak  of  "the  bench"  for  the 
judges  on  the  bench;  "the  pulpit"  for  the  clergymen 
in  the  pulpit.  An  example  of  metonymy  is  :  — 

Youth  and  old  age  are  jealous  of  each  other. 

136.  Antithesis.  —  Antithesis  is  a  figure  of  contrast, 
that  is,  the  placing  over  against   each   other   of  things 
which    differ    strikingly    in    one    or    more    particulars. 
These  particulars   are   made  prominent  as  being  espe- 
cially under  consideration. 

The  Puritans  hated  bear-baiting,  not  because  it  gave 
pain  to  the  bear,  but  because  it  gave  pleasure  to  the 
spectator. 

137.  The  Historical  Present.  —  Sometimes,  in  order 
to    make   the    mental  picture   more   real   and   living,  a 
writer  employs  the  present  tense  in  narrating  something 


FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  343 

that  occurred  in  the  past.  This  is  done  only  in  the  more 
stirring  part  of  a  story,  and  it  requires  great  skill  to 
change  from  the  use  of  the  past  tense  to  the  use  of  the 
present  in  the  same  action  without  making  the  change 
unpleasantly  apparent.  The  employment  of  the  his- 
torical present  where  the  narrative  is  too  tame  to  demand 
it,  is  particularly  to  be  avoided,  and  there  is  rarely  any 
material  gain  from  its  use. 

138.  The   Exclamation   and  Rhetorical    Question.  - 
Occasionally  a  statement  can  be  made  more  effective  by 
putting  it  in  the  form  of   an   exclamation   or  question. 
Either  may  indicate  a  greater  intensity  of  emotion  than 
is  implied  in  a  simple  affirmation,  but  neither  should  be 
used  to  create  an  unreal  and  manufactured  emotion.     A 
question  may  very  effectively  take  the  place  of  an  asser- 
tion when   the  reader's   answer  to  the    question  must 
ordinarily  be  equivalent  to  the  assertion  itself. 

139.  Other  Figures.  —  Other  figures  frequently  used 
are  apostrophe,  in  which  the  writer  addresses  inanimate 
things    as    living   beings,    the  absent   as   present,    etc., 
"  Thou,   too,  sail   on,  O    Ship  of   State  !  "  hyperbole,  in 
which    the  writer  exaggerates   to  produce  intensity  of 
feeling,  "The  many  rend  the  sky  with  loud  applause  "  ; 
irony,  in  which  something  in  the  tone  or  manner  indi- 
cates that   the  speaker  or  writer  means  the  reverse  of 
what    he    says.       Marc    Antony's    oration    in    "Julius 
Caesar"  is  an  excellent  example  of  irony. 

140.  The  Effect  of  Figures  of  Speech.  —  Emphasis  is 
gained  by  the  employment  of  figures.      It  is  possible  to 


344  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

construct  them  mechanically,  although  such  attempts 
often  betray  themselves.  Aside  from  this,  it  is  an  in- 
stinctive assumption  in  the  mind  of  the  reader  that 
figurative  language  has  its  origin  in  heightened  feeling 
in  the  writer.  This,  in  connection  with  its  suggestive 
appeal  to  imagination,  gives  figurative  language,  when 
skillfully  employed,  great  power  to  kindle  the  emotions. 
Ordinarily  in  our  reading  we  give  ourselves  to  the 
guidance  of  our  author  and  accept  his  point  of  view, 
unless  it  crosses  the  current  of  our  own  thoughts  too 
sharply,  or  is  inartistically  presented.  We  respond, 
then,  to  his  emotions,  and  accept  them  when  they  are 
presented  in  the  way  of  suggestion  rather  than  baldly  in 
definite  statement  ;  and  so  the  suggestion  of  emotion 
in  figures  contributes  directly  to  emphasis.  Taste  is 
necessary  to  use  them  fittingly,  since,  if  they  are  em- 
ployed mechanically,  they  may  give  emphasis  t6  that 
which  is  prosaic  and  unimportant. 

EXERCISES. 

i .  What  do  you  understand  by  figurative  language  ? 
Define  a  "Figure  of  Speech."  Mention  the  common 
figures  of  speech.  Distinguish  between  a  simile  and  a 
metaphor,  between  synecdoche  and  metonymy.  What  is 
an  allegory  ?  What  is  antithesis  ?  Explain  the  figures 
of  speech  in  the  following  selections  :  — 

1.  A  great  many  children  get  on  the  wrong  t^ack  because 
the  switch  is  misplaced. 

2.  Presence  of  mind  is  greatly  promoted  by  absence  of 
body. 

3.    Here  once  the  embattled  farmers  stood. 
And  fired  the  shot  heard  round  the  world. 


FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  345 

4.  Thou  hast  taught  me,  Silent  River, 
Many  a  lesson,  deep  and  long. 

5.  She  bestowed  her  hand  and  her  heart  on  a  worthy  man. 

6.  Her  hair  drooped  round  her  pallid  cheek 
Like  sea-weed  on  a  clam. 

7.  And  the  cares  that  infest  the  day 
Shall  fold  their  tents  like  the  Arabs, 
And  as  silently  steal  away. 

8.  How  sweet  it  was  to  draw  near  my  own  home  after 
living  homeless  in  the  world  so  long ! 

9.  Ye  crags  and  peaks,  I'm  with  you  once  again ! 

10.  And  thrice  the  Saxon  blade  drank  blood. 

n.  The  little  church  at  Jonesville  is  once  more  tossed 
upon  the  waves,  a  sheep  without  a  shepherd. 

12.  It  will  bring  his  gray  hairs  with  sorrow  to  the  grave. 

13.  Pain  and  pleasure  were  at  his  elbow,  telling  him  what 
to  do  and  what  to  avoid. 

14.  The  per^  is  mightier  than  the  sword. 

15.  And,  O  ye  Fountains,  Meadows,  Hills,  and  Groves, 
Forebode  not  any  severing  of  our  loves  ! 

16.  Wellington  did  not  at  Waterloo  expose  his  bosorn  to 
the«teel. 

17.  His  flashes  of  merriment  were  wont  to  set  the  table 
in  a  roar. 

18.  Miles  of  hulls  were  rotting  in  the  harbor  of  Portsmouth. 

19.  Rivers  of  water  run  down  my  eyes  because  they  keep 
not  thy  law. 

2.    Justify  the  use  of  the  exclamation  and  question  in 
the  following,  or  criticise  as  you  see  fit. 

And  look  what  perennial  fibre  of  truth  was  in  that.  To 
us  also,  through  every  star,  through  every  blade  of  grass,  is 
not  a  God  made  visible,  if  we  will  open  our  minds  and  eyes? 


346  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

We  do  not  worship  in  that  way  now  ;  but  is  it  not  reckoned 
still  a  merit,  proof  of  what  we  call  a  "  poetic  nature,"  that  we 
recognize  how  every  object  has  a  divine  beauty  in  it;  how 
every  object  still  verily  is  "a  window  through  which  we  may 
look  into  infinitude  itself"?  He  that  can  discern  the  loveliness 
of  things,  we  call  him  poet,  painter,  man  of  genius,  gifted, 
lovable.  These  poor  Sabeans  did  even  what  he  does  in  their 
own  fashion.  That  they  did  it,  in  what  fashion  soever,  was 
a  merit ;  better  than  what  the  entirely  stupid  man  did,  what 
the  horse  and  camel  did  —  namely,  nothing  !  —  CARLYLE  : 
Heroes  and  Hero  Worship. 

3.  Re-write  the  following  paragraph,  changing  the 
imaginative  words  and  figurative  expressions  of  every 
kind  to  the  literal  form.  Point  out  all  similes  and  meta- 
phors, and  say  whether  they  are  good  or  not  and  why. 
Are  there  any  figurative  expressions  that  are  hackneyed  ? 
Be  prepared  to  state  in  class  what  difference  in  effect 
there  is  between  the  original  and  the  literal  rendering  you 
have  made. 

In  the  heart  of  a  northern  wilderness,  on  the  shore  of  an 
unnamed  laFe,  stands  the  ruin  of  a  small  hut.  Half  the  roof 
has  fallen  in.  The  logs  are  rotted  and  covered  with  moss. 
In  the  dark  corners  spectral  weeds  and  ferns  die  longing  for 
the  sun.  The  spring  wTnds,  touching  the  water  ligrTOy,  make 
ripples'  that  never  reach  the  shore.  In  early  summer  the 
.small,  shadowy  clouds  drift  dreamily  out  of  the  West  and 
vanish  like  a  vision.  In  autumn  "the  sky  is  flushed  and 
knotted  like  the  forehead  of  an  angry  god  ;  a  wakeful  bird, 
somewhere  in  the  bushes,  utters  a  few  long-drawn,  passionate 
notes;  the  sky  that  follows  is  dark  and  starless,  and  the 
wind,  searching  for  forgotten  paths  among  the  trees,  heaves 
long,  low,  tremulous  sighs.  The  winter  wind,  untamed  out 
of  the  north,  drives  the  sifted  snow,  hissing  like  steam,  across 
the  surface  of  the  lake.  The  haunts  of  men  seem  as  far 
away  as  the  stars  that  throb  faintly  in  the  lonely  vastness  of 
the  summer  sky.  The  silence  that  dwells  forever  in  the 
waste  places  of  the  world  is  shaken  by  unheeded  storms  and 
the  muffled  cries  of  life  in  the  gloom  of  the  immense  forests 
that  darken  beneath  her  brooding  wing.  —  DUNCAN  CAMP- 
BELL SCOTT  :  The  Ducharmes  of  the  Baskatonge.  Scribbler's 
Magazine,  I.  243. 


PART   IV. 

PROSODY. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE    FORMAL    ELEMENTS    OF    POETRY. 

141.    Definition  of  Poetry Poetry  differs  from  prose 

in  its  form,  which  is  metrical,  in  its  more  regular  rhythm, 
and  in  the  choice  and  arrangement  of  its  language.  It 
differs  from  prose  further  in  the  more  emotional  char- 
acter of  its  subject  matter,  and  m  its  stronger  appeal  to 
the  imagination  and  the  aesthetic  sense.  Shelley  de- 
fined poetry  as  "the  record  of  the  best  and  happiest 
moments  of  the  happiest  and  best  minds  ;  "  and  Ruskin 
said,  "  Poetry  is  the  suggestion  by  the  imagination  of 
noble  grounds  for  noble  emotions."  These  definitions 
are  incomplete,  as  they  neglect  the  element  of  form, 
which  is  superficially  the  thing  that  distinguishes  poetry 
from  prose.  This  chapter  is  concerned  with  the  form 
of  verse  rather  than  with  its  spirit ;  but  it  should  be 
remembered  that,  while  comparative  perfection  of  form 
is  necessary  in  any  work  of  art  that  is  to  endure,  verse 
which  is  not  poetic  in  spirit  as  well  as  in  form  is  not 


/ 


34 8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

properly  poetry.  Poetry  is  the  highest  form  of  literary 
expression,  and  should  give  evidence  of  the  finest 
taste. 

142.  Poetic   Diction In  chapter  XIII.  .we  noticed 

that  words  suitable  for  use  in  prose  are  often  unsuitable 
for  use  in  poetry.     On    the  other  hand,  archaismsauin- 
admissible    in  prose,   such    as  "dire,"   "meseems,"  and 
"  erstwhile  ;  "  inversions,  "  Their  merry  wakes  and  pas- 
times keep  "  (Milton)  ;  compounds,  "For  fiery-short  was 
Cyril's    counter-scoff"    (Tennyson),  —  are    frequent    in 
poetry.       Elisions,    "o'er"    for    "over,"    "ne'er"    for 
"never,"  and  others,  are  also  found;  but  as  they  are 
employed  to  do  away  with  an  extra    syllable,   and  add 
nothing  of   poetic  value,   they  should  be  avoided.     As 
poetry  appeals  to  feeling,  and  should  give  pleasure,  it 
employs  the  concrete  and  particular  ;  it  makes  use  of 
figurative    and    picturesque    expressions,    epithets    that 
give  color  and  vividness,  and  words    that  are  musical. 
Further,  as  poetry  is  a  more  .condensed  form  of  expres- 
sion than  prose,  it  omits  connectives,  and,  in  general, 
all  words  that  are  not  essential  to  the   understanding 
of  the  reader,  and    that    do    not   heighten   aesthetic  or 
emotional    interest.     "  Poetic    license,"    which    excuses 
the  use  of    some    expressions  not    sanctioned  by  good 
usage  in  prose,  is  perhaps  growing  less  indulgent. 

143.  Kinds  of  Poetry The  earliest  and  the  simplest 

form  of  poetry  is  the  lyric,  a  brief  composition   of  such 
character  that  it  may  be  sung.     The  ballad,  the  love- 
song,  the  war-song,  the  elegy,  the  ode,  are  all  lyrical. 


PROSODY.  349 

The  sonnet  is  a  special  form  of  the  lyric,  consisting  of 
two  divisions  or  stanzas,  the  first  of  eight  lines,  rhyming 
ordinarily  in  the  order  a,b,b,a,a,b,b,a ;  the  second  of  six 
lines,  in  which  the  alternation  of  rhymes  is  less  formally 
managed.  The  ode  is  the  most  elaborate  of  these  sev- 
eral forms,  and  should  express  high  and  sustained  feeling, 
usually  with  such  varying  rhythms  as  make  it  unfit  to 
be  sung.  The  elegy,  of  which  Milton's  "  Lycidas  "  and 
Gray's  "  Elegy  "  are  good  examples,  voices  the  writer's 
love  for  a  dead  frienJ  or  hero,  imaginary  or  real. 

Epic  poetry  concerns  itself  with  the  story  of  some  great 
and  heroic  event,  connected  often  with  the  beginnings 
of  a  people's  national  life.  Thus  "  Beowulf,"  Homer's 
"  Iliad,"  Virgil's  "^Eneid,"  Milton's  "  Paradise  Lost,"  are 
epics.  Clearly  the  epic  must  always  have  considerable 
length,  and  should  involve  characters  and  incidents 
enough  to  give  it  a  large  interest.  An  event  of  rel- 
atively recent  occurrence  is  not  a  fit  subject  for  epic 
treatment  ;  since  it  does  not  leave  the  poet  free  to 
exercise  his  selective  imagination  in  giving  shape  to  the 
story,  and  the  knowledge  of  the  facts  as  facts  brings 
it  all  down  to  the  level  of  commonplace  for  the  reader. 

Dramatic  poetry  includes  tragedy,  comedy,  farce, 
opera,  and  melodrama.  In  all  of  these  the  action  of  the 
story  is  developed  through  the  conversation  of  the  char- 
acters without  comment  by  the  author.  A  drama  is 
a  tragedy  when  the  principal  character,  through  the 
operation  of  qualities  within  himself  or  through  other  in- 
fluences, defeats  the  nobler  promise  which  in  the  opening 


350  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

of  the  action  we  seemed  to  see  in  him.  Death  may  or 
may  not  be  the  outcome  for  the  character  so  disappoint- 
ing us.  In  comedy  the  conclusion  is  more  in  accord 
with  what  seems  the  just  desert  of  the  characters. 
"Julius  Caesar  "  is  a  tragedy  because  in  it  Brutus  fails 
of  coming  to  what  his  essential  nobility  of  nature  per- 
mits us  to  expect  of  him.  "  The  Merchant  of  Venice  " 
is  a  comedy  because,  not  only  to  Shylock,  but  also  to 
Antonio  and  Bassanio  and  Portia  and  others,  including 
the  various  suitors  for  Portia's  hand,  there  is  given  what 
we  feel  to  be  a  very  satisfying  justice.  Farce  is  a  lower 
sort  of  comedy,  having  little  or  no  moral  or  spiritual 
significance,  and  depending  for  its  effect  mainly  upon  the 
ludicrous.  In  opera  the  parts  are  sung.  Melodrama, 
in  which  some  of  them  may  be  sung,  is  characterized  by 
exaggerated  sentiment. 

144.  Some  Terms  Applied  to  Poetry.  —  In  works  on 
Prosody  various  technical  terms  are  used  which  should 
be  understood  definitely.  A  verse  is  a  single  line  of 
poetry,  or  a  paragraph  in  the  Bible.  When  two  suc- 
cessive verses  rhyme  they  together  form  a  couplet. 
When  three  successive  verses  rhyme,  they  form  a 
triplet.  Blank  verse  is  verse  without  rhyme.  A  group 
of  two  or  more  verses,  so  adjusted  to  one  another  as  to 
form  a  whole,  is  called  a  stanza.  A  quatrain  is  a 
stanza  of  four  lines.  Scansion  is  the  reading  of  poetry 
so  as  to  mark  the  rhythm.  A  foot  is  the  unit  by  which 
a  line  of  poetry  is  measured.  It  will  be  explained  in 
the  following  section. 


PROSODY. 


35* 


145.  Meter.  —  English  verse  is  primarily  dependent 
for  its  poetic  form  upon  the  arrangement  of  words  in 
such  order  as  will  bring  accented  syllables  at  regular  in- 
tervals, and  will  give  to  each  line  a  definite  number  of 
these  accented  syllables.  A  line  of  poetry  is  measured 
by  a  certain  unit  of  measure  called  the  foot,  each  foot 
containing,  ordinarily,  one  accented  and  one,  two,  or 
rarely  even  three  unaccented  syllables  differently  ar- 
ranged in  different  poems,  but  in  any  one  poem  follow- 
ing the  same  model  with  little  variation.  The  various 
combinations  of  syllables  forming  a  foot  are  given 
names  according  to  the  relative  position  of  the  ac- 
cented and  the  unaccented  syllables.  Below  are  given 
examples  of  the  various  kinds  of  feet,  the  marks  follow- 
ing indicating  the  arrangement  of  the  syllables.  To 
avoid  confusion  with  Latin  and  Greek  verse  systems,  in 
which  syllabic  length  or  quantity,  and  not  accent,  is  the 
determining  feature,  it  has  seemed  best  to  employ  the 
accent  mark,  '  and  the  oblique  cross  x  for  accented  and 
unaccented  syllables,  instead  of  the  usual  marks  of 
long, —  and  short,w  which,  however,  are  also  given. 

X         / 


Iambic,              |    Away            |, 

/        X 

Trochaic, 

Flying           |, 

/            X      X 

Dactylic,            |    Beautiful       , 

X         X          / 

Anapaestic, 

Undertake   |, 

X         /         X 

Amphibrachic, 

Forsaking    |, 

Spondaic, 

Room-mate  1, 

/     X 


/    X  X 


X  X    / 


X    /   X 


or 


or 


or      — 


or    |  ^  w—  | 


or 


or 


352  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  verse  takes  its  name  from  the  prevailing  foot  in 
it,  and  is  called  iambic,  trochaic,  dactylic  or  anapczstic 
verse,  as  the  case  may  be. 

146.  Accented  and  Long  Syllables.  —  In  most  cases 
it  will  be  true  that  the  accented  syllable  is  long  also  ; 
but  when  the  accent  is  a  secondary  accent,  as  may 
happen  in  the  case  of  words  of  several  syllables,  the  time 
required  to  say  it  may  not  be  much  greater  than  that 
required  for  unaccented  syllables.  On  the  other  hand, 
unaccented  syllables  are  sometimes  long.  The  rhythm 
of  a  poem  is  affected  by  the  length  of  the  syllables  as 
well  as  by  the  accent.  Verse  in  which  the  unaccented 
syllables  are  uniformly  light  is  more  rapid  in  movement 
than  that  in  which  longer  unaccented  syllables  occur. 
The  rhythm  of  poetry  is,  of  course,  more  affected  by 
the  arrangement  of  vowel  and  consonant  sounds,  and 
by  the  ease  or  difficulty  of  pronouncing  them  in  suc- 
cession, than  that  of  prose.  The  first  stanza  following 
illustrates  the  effect  of  delay  produced  by  long  unac- 
cented syllables ;  the  second,  the  effect  of  hurry  pro- 
duced by  short  unaccented  syllables.  The  two  have  the 
same  verse  form.  To  facilitate  comparison,  marks  to 
indicate  accent  and  length  have  been  placed  over  the 

WOrdS'  ,    ,          x          ,        x          ,.'•':, 

The  lambkin  crops  its  crimson  gem  ; 

X  /  _X_  _/  _X  /          X  J 

The  wild  bee  murmurs  on  its  breast ; 

X  _/  Jl         _/         .          *  ^         X  f_ 

The  blue  fly  bends  its  pensile  stem, 

/  X  X  /     X  /_ 

Light  o'er  the  sk  lark's  nest. 

JAMES  MONTGOMERY. 


PROSODY.  353 

X          /  X  /  X  /  X  l_ 

He  rose  at  dawn  and  fired  with  hope, 

X          /  X         _/_         X  /  X  / 

Shot  o'er  the  seething  harbor-bar, 

x          _/  x          /       x  _/_  x       \_ 

And  reached  the  ship  and  caught  the  rope, 

x  /        x         /         x  l_       x  _/ 

And  whistled  to  the  morning  star. 

ALFRED  TENNYSON. 

In  each  h'ne  of  the  above  there  are  four  iambi,  the 
whole  line  being  divided  into  feet  as  follows  : 

|x/|     I x / I       x  /  I       x  / 

147.  Length  of  Line.  —  The  length  of  a  line  is  deter- 
mined by  the  number  of  feet  which  it  contains.  Lines 
of  four  feet,  whether  these  feet  are  iambic,  trochaic,, 
dactylic  or  anapaestic,  are  called  tetrameter.  The  Eng- 
lish ballad  stanza  is  composed  of  such  lines  alternating 
with  lines  of  three  feet,  trimeter,  prevailingly  iambic,  but 
admitting  an  occasional  anapaest,  as  in  the  following 
stanza  from  an  old  English  ballad  of  Robin  Hood  : 

X  /  X          /  X      /  X  / 

I  Then  he     put  on  |  the  old     man's  hat,  | 

X  /  X  /  X  X  / 

|  It  stood     full  high  |  on  the  crown :  | 

X          /  X  /  X.  X  /  X  / 

|  "  The  first     bold  bar  |  gain  that  I  |  come  at,  | 

X  /  X  /  X  / 

|  It  shall     make  thee  |  come  down." 

Lines  of  one  foot,  called  manometer,  are  of  rare 
occurrence. 

Lines  of  two  feet,  called  dimeter,  are  shown  below, 
the  anapaestic  having  an  added  syllable. 


354  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Iambic,    |  Go  16ve  |  ly  r6se.  | 
Trochaic,  |  Fafry  |  Lilian.  | 
Dactylic,    |  Like  a  storm  |  suddenly. 


Anapaestic,  |  Where  the  white 
Amphibrachic,  I  Fold  c!6sely, 


mists  forev  |  er. 
O  nature.  I 


Lines  of  three  feet,  called  trimeter,  are  found  more 
frequently  than  lines  of  two  feet,  but  the  anapaestic  and 
dactylic  are  rare,  except  in  combination  with  other 
forms. 

Iambic,  |  And  I  |  will  pledge  |  with  mine. 
Trochaic,     Like  a  |  high  born  |  maiden.  | 
Dactylic,  |  These  in  the  |  robings  of     gl6ry.  | 
Anapaestic,     I  am  m6n  |  arch  of  all  |  I  survey.  | 
Amphibrachic,  |  I  lured  him  |  not  hither     Ulysses.  | 

Iambic  tetrameter  has  been  spoken  of,  but  examples 
of  the  other  meters  in  lines  of  four  feet  are  given  below. 

Trochaic,  |  I  re  |  member  |  I  re  |  member.  | 
Dactylic,     Hail,  to    the     chie'f  who  in  |  triumph  ad-  | 

vances. 

Anapaestic,  |  From  the  church     came  a   miir  |  mur  of 

folk  |  at  their  prayers. 

Lines  of  five  feet  are  called  pentameter  and  are  of 
frequent  occurrence. 

Iambic,  |  They  al  |  so  serve  |  who  6n  •  |  ly  stand  |  and 
wait.  | 

148.    Other    Meters Other  meters   are   found   in 

lines  of  five  feet ;  but  as  they  are  like  those  above  with 
an  additional  foot,  examples  need  not  be  given.  There 
are  also  lines  of  six  feet,  hexameter,  lines  of  seven  feet, 


PROSODY.  355 

heptdmeter,  and  lines  of  eight  feet,  octometer.  Of 
these  the  dactylic  hexameter  is  perhaps  the  most  im- 
portant, although  it  is  a  Greek  rather  than  an  English 
measure.  The  examples  of  dactylic  trimeter  and  tetram- 
eter given  above,  it  will  be  noticed,  are  incomplete  in 
that  the  last  foot  has  only  two  instead  of  three  syl- 
lables. A  line  ending  with  two  unaccented  syllables 
would  be  unpleasantly  weak,  and  therefore  the  last 
foot  of  a  line  of  dactylic  hexameter  should  contain  only 
two  syllables.  These  two  syllables  should  both  be 
accented,  or  at  least  long  syllables  ;  in  other  words, 
the  foot  should  be  a  spondee.  As  words  which  end 
with  two  consecutive  long  or  accented  syllables  are 
rare  in  the  English  language,  this  measure  is  not  very 
available  for  English  poets.  The  spondaic  foot,  of 
course,  occurs  only  as  an  occasional  variant  in  other 
meters,  as  it  would  be  almost  impossible  to  write  a 
line  of  any  length  composed  of  spondees. 

149.    The  Prevailing  English  Verse A  casual  glance 

over  almost  any  collection  of  representative  English 
poetry  will  at  once  reveal  the  fact  that  the  meter  is  very 
largely  iambic.  It  is  not  only  the  meter  of  the  English 
heroic  ballad,  as  we  have  seen,  but  it  is  also  employed 
almost  entirely  in  blank  verse,  which  is  prevailingly 
iambic  pentameter.  In  this  measure  the  greater  poets 
of  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth  and  since  have  written 
much  of  their  best  poetry.  It  is  the  verse  of  Shake- 
speare's plays,  of  Tennyson's  "  Idyls  of  the  King,"  "The 
Princess"  and  other  poems,  of  Browning's  dramas  and 


356  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

dramatic  monologues,  of  Milton's  "  Paradise  Lost,"  of 
Morris's  "  Life  and  Death  of  Jason,"  of  Arnold's 
"  Sohrab  and  Rustum." 

In  any  poetry  the  established  meter  will  occasionally 
be  varied  by  the  introduction  of  a  foot  of  another  sort, 
but  the  number  of  feet  in  the  line  is  not  subject  to 
change  in  any  such  irregular  fashion. 

150.  Special  Verse  Forms The  sonnet  has  been 

spoken  of  as  one  of  the  forms  of  the  lyric,  and  it 
should  be  said  further  that  it  is  invariably  written  in 
iambic  pentameter.  The  Spenserian  stanza,  so  named 
from  Edmund  Spenser,  who  first  gave  it  vogue  in  The 
Faerie  Queene,  is  a  stanza  of  nine  lines  having  the 
rhymes  arranged  in  the  order  a,b,a,b,b,c,b,c,c,  the  first 
eight  lines  being  iambic  pentameter,  and  the  last  an 
Alexandrine,  a  line  of  six  feet  iambic.  Lines  of  six 
feet  are  too  heavy  save  for  occasional  use  for  special 
purposes,  and  consequently  they  are  but  rarely  used. 
The  shorter  lines  are  especially  fitted  for  the  pas- 
sion, the  grace,  and  the  movement  of  the  lyric  ;  and 
the  cavalier  poets,  Herrick,  Suckling,  Lovelace,  and 
others,  in  whose  work  the  lyric  strain  was  perhaps  at 
its  highest  in  English  poetry,  employed  them  largely. 
In  the  rhymed  couplet  —  the  verse  form  especially 
of  Pope  and  his  school  —  the  thought  is  completed  in 
two  lines  which  are  further  bound  together  by  the 
rhyme.  A  succession  of  these  is  wearying,  and  this 
form  is  not  a  natural  vehicle  for  poetry  of  the  highest 
order, 


PROSODY.  357 

EXERCISES. 

1.  Bring  to  class  examples  of  archaisms  employed  in 
poetry,  stating  where  found. 

2.  Bring  to  class  stanzas  illustrating  four  of  the  dif- 
ferent sorts  of  meter  of  which  this  chapter  treats,  marking 
each  line  with  marks  of  accent  and  length. 

3.  What  is  the  meter  of  "  The  Lady  of  the  Lake  "  ? 
of  "  L'Allegro  "  ?  of  "  Evangeline  "  ?  of  Pope's  "  Iliad  "  ? 
of  "  The  Ancient  Mariner  "  ?  of  the  three  stanzas  begin- 
ning "The    Lady   of   the    Lake"?    of  the  song   "while 
Bassanio  comments  on  the  caskets  "  in  the  "  Merchant  of 
Venice  "  ? 

4.  Bring  to  class  lines  of  poetry  which  seem  to  you  to 
be  more  than  ordinarily  heavy  and  delayed  by  the  use  of 
unaccented  syllables   which   are   long.     Bring  also  lines 
which  are  rapid  for  the  contrary  reason. 

5.  Bring  to   class  an  example   of  the    lyric,  and    say 
what  meters   it   employs,    and  whether   it  is   delayed  or 
rapid  in  movement. 


COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC, 


APPENDIX  A. 

PUNCTUATION    AND    THE    USE    OF    CAPITALS. 

Importance  of  Punctuation. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  point  out  how  important 
a  part  punctuation  plays  in  the  interpretation  of  written 
or  printed  discourse.  A  recent  decision  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Massachusetts,  directly  affecting  hun- 
dreds of  citizens,  turned  on  the  probably  careless  use 
of  a  semicolon  instead  of  a  comma.  Moreover,  we 
have  only  to  read  a  page  of  printed  matter,  or  a  badly 
punctuated  letter,  to  see  how  difficult  it  is  to  decipher 
the  meaning,  and  to  feel  how  needful  it  is  to  have  some 
mechanical  scheme  that  shall  show  the  division  of 
thought  and  the  relationship  of  the  different  parts. 
Just  as  in  oral  discourse  we  give  greater  expression  to 
our  ideas,  convey  the  fine  shades  of  meaning,  and  make 
our  thoughts  a  genuine  transcript  of  our  feelings  and 
sentiments  by  our  inflections,  our  pauses,  and  other 
variations  of  tone  ;  so  in  written  discourse  we  try  to 
produce  the  same  effect  by  the  marks  of  punctuation. 
By  it,  too,  we  indicate  the  grammatical  structure  of  the 
written  language,  dividing  it  into  sentences,  and  showing 
the  various  relations  of  the  words  in  a  sentence.  The 


APPENDIX  A,  359 

importance,  therefore,  of  careful  punctuation  cannot  be 
too  strongly  impressed  upon  our  minds. 

Rules  of  Punctuation. 

Punctuation  is  a  matter  of  custom,  and  as  such  is  a 
growth.  The  accepted  method  of  punctuating  a  sentence 
to-day  is  not  the  same  as  that  of  a  half-century  ago. 
Fewer  marks  of  punctuation,  especially  commas,  are 
used  at  present,  the  tendency  being  to  simplify  punctua- 
tion as  much  as  possible.  As  it  is  evident,  therefore, 
that  punctuation  is  an  art,  rather  than  a  science,  the 
writer  must  have  in  mind  in  each  case  the  need  of 
making  the  punctuation  contribute  to  the  clearness  and 
effectiveness  of  his  sentences,  rather  than  of  conform- 
ing to  some  established  rules.  At  the  same  time,  rules 
are  merely  the  statements  of  what  in  general  usage, 
and  according  to  common  judgment,  have  proved  the 
most  useful  methods  of  making  punctuation  a  help  to 
the  reader's  understanding.  Conformity  to  them  is 
generally  desirable,  and  a  knowledge  of  them  is  neces- 
sary for  every  one  who  wishes  to  appear  other  than 
rude  in  what  he  writes.1  In  general  it  may  be  said 
that  the  writer  should  punctuate  as  he  writes,  rather 
than  afterwards,  and  that  no  punctuation  mark  should 
be  used  for  which  a  definite  reason  cannot  be  given. 

1  Wilson's  Treatise  on  Punctuation  is  the  commonly  accepted  authority  on  the 
subject  among  printers,  and  with  some  exceptions  the  authors  of  this  book  have 
followed  the  rules  as  there  laid  down.  Bigelow's  Handbook  of  Punctuation,  a  con- 
densed form  of  Wilson's  Treatise,  may  be  recommended  as  a  convenient  reference 
book  on  the  subject. 


360  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  Comma. 

I.  The  comma  should  be  used  to  separate  words  or 
phrases  used  in  series  without  conjunctions  to  connect 
them. 

It  breathes  the  spirit  of  conflict,  war,  destruction,  and 
death  upon  everything  it  touches. 

II.  Participial  and  adjective  phrases,  absolute  expres- 
sions, and  adverbial  phrases  placed  out  of  their  natural 
order,  should  be  separated  by  commas. 

My  yellow-throat  is  a  good  hunter,  prowling  keen-eyed 
about  the  edges  of  the  swamp  outlet  where  insects  abound, 
snatching  them  from  grass  blade  and  leaflet,  or  hunting 
them  out  of  the  leaves. 

From  figurations  of  the  capes  to  the  humpless  inlets  of 
the  bays,  he  exerts  a  manly  fellow-feeling. 

III.  Parenthetical  words  and  expressions  should  be 
set  off  by  commas,  when  the  thought  relation  is  close. 

The  man  who  works  upon  a  railway,  no  matter  in  what 
capacity,  always  carries  the  railway  brand  with  him,  and 
can  be  identified  in  a  moment. 

IV.  Words  or  expressions  in  apposition,  or  in  the  vo- 
cative case,  should  be  set  off  by  commas. 

At  the  age  of  five  years  Victor  had  seen  Paris  and 
Rome,  and  had  lived  at  various  places  in  France  and 
Italy,  one  of  these  being  near  Mount  Vesuvius. 

Mr.  Brown,  a  resident  of  this  city,  has  been  elected 
president  of  the  company. 

V.  The  conjunction  may  have  a  comma  before  it  to 
distinguish  it  in  its  use  from  a  preceding  like  conjunc- 


APPENDIX  A.  361 

tion,   more  limited  in  its  action,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
second  and  in  Rule  IV.  above 

Tell  me,  my  man,  if  this  is  just  and  honest,  and  if  you 
respect  such  leadership. 

VI.  Relative  clauses  that  are  not  restrictive,  that  is, 
those  that  add  an  explanation  or  an  additional  thought 
instead   of   narrowing  the  meaning   of  the  substantive, 
should  be  set  off  by  commas.     If  the  clause  is  restrictive, 
no  comma  is  needed. 

This  book,  which  is  a  rare  old  volume,  is  highly  prized 
by  me. 

The  book  which  you  refer  to  has  long  been  out-of- 
print. 

VII.  Dependent  clauses  may  or  may  not  be  set  off 
by  commas  according  to  the  closeness  of  the  relation. 

Jfj  indeed,  there  be  anything  in  local  associations  fit  to  affect 
the  mind  of  ma?i,  we  need  not  strive  to  repress  the  emotions 
which  agitate  us  here. 

When  it  is  remembered  that  alcohol  contains  no  nitrogen  it 
will  be  seen  that  it  cannot  serve  the  first  function  of  food. 

VIII.  Short     and     closely     connected    independent 
clauses    may    be    separated    by    the    comma    when    the 
period  or  the  semicolon  would  give  a  sense  of  too  great 
division. 

We  took  our  seats  in  the  car,  the  gong  sounded,  there 
was  a  hissing  of  steam,  and  we  were  off. 

IX.  Short  quotations  should  be  separated  from  the 
context  by  commas. 


362  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

"  The  Moqui  Indians  are  a  remarkable  people,"  said 
Professor  Beecher. 

X.  The  omission  of  a  word  should  be  indicated  by  a 
comma,  except  when  the  meaning  is  clear  without  it. 

Fame  is  the  lode-star  of  some  men ;  pleasure,  of  others. 

XI.  Negative  expressions,  used  by  way  of  contrast, 
are  set  off  by  commas. 

The  politicians,  not  the  people,  will  benefit  by  this  law. 

The  Semicolon. 

I.  Independent  clauses,  when  long,  or  detached  sen- 
tences having  close  relation  in  thought,  may  be  separated 
by  semicolons. 

In  the  arbitration  courts  the  lawyers  are  not  allowed  to 
represent  either  party ;  only  the  parties  themselves  are 
heard. 

II.  When  the  clauses  of  a  compound  sentence  con- 
tain commas  they  should  be  separated  by  the  semicolon. 

Artists  of  the  first  rank  have  usually  seen  small  induce- 
ment to  paint  such  things  as  bunches  of  flowers  or  fruits, 
bottles  and  glasses  of  wine,  and  other  still-life  subjects ; 
but  Vollon  has  justified  still-life  work  for  all  time. 

III.  A  clause  giving  a _ reason  or  an  explanation,  or 
stating  a   contrast,   when   introduced    by  a    connective 
word,  should  be  preceded  by  a  semicolon. 

Economy  is  no  disgrace ;  for  it  is  better  to  live  on  little 
than  to  outlive  a  great  deal. 


APPENDIX  A.  363 

IV.  A  series  of  expressions  having  a  common  depend- 
ence on  a  preceding  or  a  concluding  portion  of  the  sen- 
tence should  be  separated  by  semicolons  when  they  are 
distinct  propositions,  or  are  of  a  compound  nature. 

That  you  were  unwise  in  your  choice  of  friends ;  that 
you  permitted  yourself  to  be  influenced  too  much  by 
them ;  that  you  did  not  rebuke  them  for  open  violation  of 
trust,  —  you  cannot  well  deny. 

The  Colon. 

I.  Independent  clauses    which   are    too    closely  con- 
nected to  require  the  period  should   be  separated  by  a 
colon  when  any  of  these  clauses  contains  a  semicolon. 

A  man  can  scarce  allege  his  own  merits  with  modesty, 
much  less  extol  them ;  a  man  cannot  sometimes  brook  to 
supplicate  or  beg ;  and  a  number  of  the  like  :  but  all  these 
things  are  graceful  in  a  friend's  mouth,  which  are  blush- 
ing in  a  man's  own. 

II.  A  long  or  formal  quotation   should  be  preceded 
by  the  colon. 

The  report  of  the  society  convicted  "  the  Priestess  of 
Isis  "  of  "  a  long  continued  combination  with  other  per- 
sons to  produce  by  ordinary  means  a  series  of  apparent 
marvels  for  the  support  of  the  Theosophic  movement ; " 
and  concludes  with  these  words  :  "  For  our  own  part,  we 
regard  her  neither  as  the  mouthpiece  of  hidden  seers  nor 
as  a  mere  vulgar  adventuress ;  we  think  that  she  has 
achieved  a  title  to  permanent  remembrance  as  one  of  the 
most  accomplished,  ingenious,  and  interesting  impostors 
in  history." 

III.  The  colon  followed  by  the  dash  is  used  after  the 
address  in  a  letter. 


364  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

The  Period. 

I.  The  period  should  be  put  at  the  end  of  every  full 
sentence  where  the  interrogation  mark  or  the  exclama- 
tion is  not  required. 

II.  Every  abbreviated   word  should  be   followed  by 
the  period. 

The  Interrogation  Mark. 

The  interrogation  mark  is  used  after  direct  questions. 

The  Exclamation   Mark. 

I.  The  exclamation  mark    follows    interjections    and 
exclamatory  words  and  expressions. 

II.  Sometimes  the  distinctly  exclamatory  word  is  but 
part  of  the   exclamation,    in  which  case   it   is   followed 
immediately  by  a  comma,  and  the  whole  expression,  by 
the  exclamation  mark. 

Yet  such  was  I !  Oh,  such  was  I ! 

The  Hyphen. 

The  hyphen  is  used  at  the  end  of  a  line  when  a  part 
of  the  word  is  carried  over  to  the  next  line. 

The  hyphen  is  used  to  separate  the  parts  of  a  com- 
pound word,  as  semi-circle,  topic-sentence,  and  brother-in- 
law;  but  in  such  cases  the  writer  must  be  consistent  in 
the  use  of  the  hyphen.  If  the  two  words  do  not  form 
a  distinct  compound  they  should  be  written  as  separate 
words.  If  they  are  used  as  a  compound  word,  the  hyphen 


APPENDIX  A. 


365 


should  be  employed,  unless  they  have  become  so  closely 
united  as  to  form  a  single  word,  like  semicolon.  The 
tendency  is  to  unite  in  this  way  many  words  which 
formerly  required  the  hyphen. 

Parenthetical  Expressions. 

Dashes,  parentheses,  and  brackets  are  used  to  indi- 
cate that  the  matter  inclosed  within  them  is  in  some 
degree  separate  in  thought  from  the  context ;  dashes 
indicate  the  least  degree  of  separation,  and  brackets,  the 
greatest.  The  dash  is  also  used  to  show  an  abrupt 
change  in  the  thought. 

But  the  congregation  —  a  fictitious  and  eternal  person 
—  never  divides  or  breaks  up  his  property,  which  consti- 
tutes a  dreadful  economical  danger. 

I  know  —  that  is,  I  think  —  I  believe  I  can  recover  it. 

Slow  thro'  the  churchway  path  we  saw  him  borne,  — 
Approach  and  read, — 

The  Apostrophe. 

The  apostrophe  is  used  to  mark  the  possessive  case, 
to  indicate  the  elision  of  a  letter  or  letters,  to  mark  the 
end  of  a  quotation  within  a  quotation,  and  to  separate 
the  final  s  in  the  plural  of  letters  and  figures. 

Italics. 

Italics  are  used  to  show  emphasis,  to  mark  foreign 
words  not  yet  received  into  the  language,  and  to  indicate 
words  of  special  importance,  such  as  titles  and  words 
used  in  a  special  sense. 


366  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Quotation  Marks. 

All  passages  directly  quoted  are  inclosed  within  quo- 
tation marks.  When  the  words  directly  quoted  are 
broken  by  comment  of  the  writer,  the  fact  that  the  inter- 
polation is  not  part  of  the  quotation  should  be  shown  by 
the  quotation  marks.  Long  quotations  of  more  than  a 
paragraph,  if  continuous,  should  have  quotation  marks 
at  the  beginning  of  each  paragraph,  but  at  the  end  of 
the  last  one  only.  Titles  of  books,  etc.,  may  be  put  in 
quotation  marks  or  printed  in  italics  as  the  taste  of  the 
writer  suggests. 

Capital  Letters. 

I.  Every  sentence,  every  line  of   poetry,  and  every 
direct  quotation,  except    when    it    is    brought    into  the 
sentence  as  a  phrase,  or  as  a  subordinate  part  of  a  sen- 
tence (see  example  under  Rule  II.  for  the  colon),  should 
begin  with  a  capital  letter. 

II.  All  names  of  the  Deity  should  begin  with  capitals. 
Thou,  Eternal  One,  Almighty,  Father,  etc. 

III.  All  proper  names  and   adjectives  derived  from 
them  should  begin  with  capitals.     Boston,  Harvard  Col- 
lege, American,  English,  etc. 

IV.  The  principal  words  in  the  titles  of  books,  titles 
of  honor,  official  titles,  and  the  like,  should  begin  with 
capitals.     Composition  and  Retoric,  A  Manual  of  His- 
tory,   General    Grant,    Governor    Crane,    Mayor    Hart, 
Major-General  Wheeler,  etc. 


APPENDIX  A.  367 

V.  The  words  North,  South,   East,  and  West,  when 
referring  to  certain  sections  of  the  country,  should  begin 
with    capitals.      "The    South    is  recovering   from    the 
effects  of  the  Civil  War."    "The  West  is  opposed  to  the 
measure."     When  these  words  refer  simply  to  direction 
they  do  not  require  capitals. 

VI.  Names   of    political    parties   and  religious  sects 
should  begin  with  capital  letters.    Republican,  Democrat, 
Methodist,  Second  Advent,  Christian  Scientist,  etc. 

VII.  Abstract  qualities  when  personified,  as  in  poetry, 
should  begin   with  capitals.      "  Let  not  Ambition  mock 
their  useful  toil."     "  Let  Love  clasp  Grief  lest  both  be 
drowned." 

VIII.  The  pronoun   I    and   the    interjection  O    are 
always  written  with  capitals. 

NOTE.  —  No  exercises  involving  punctuation  or  the  use  of 
capitals  are  given,  as  the  books,  magazines,  and  daily  papers 
at  hand  afford  abundant  material  for  the  study  of  these 
matters.  At  intervals  pupils  may  be  directed  to  bring  to  the 
class  a  paragraph  from  a  book  or  a  magazine,  and  explain 
the  punctuation. 


368  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


APPENDIX   B. 

LETTER-WRITING. 

What  Makes  a  Good  Letter. 

Letters  differ  from  other  forms  of  composition  in 
being  more  personal  and  less  dependent  upon  literary 
art  for  the  interest  which  they  are  to  arouse.  Those  to 
friends  should  be  written  in  an  easy,  conversational 
vein,  but  care  should  be  taken  that  in  their  tone  of 
friendly  familiarity  they  do  not  go  beyond  the  actual 
intimacy  of  the  correspondents.  In  our  conversation 
we  make  continual  adjustment  of  what  we  have  to  say 
to  our  understanding  of  the  character  and  the  likings  of 
our  hearers,  and  in  our  letters  a  like  adaptation  to  the 
interest  and  tastes  of  our  readers  is  the  thing  of  most 
importance.  Upon  this  the  pleasure  of  a  personal  cor- 
respondence largely  depends,  since  two  people  can  rarely 
have  many  interests  in  common,  and  such  common  inter- 
ests must  always  lessen  as  each  is  more  and  more 
absorbed  in  the  concerns  of  the  separate  localities  in 
which  he  finds  himself.  Little  personal  happenings, 
when  narrated  with  vivacity,  give  color  to  a  letter ;  but 
the  effective  use  of  them  requires  literary  skill,  since 
they  should  be  made  interesting  in  themselves,  apart 


APPENDIX  B.  369 

from  the  writer's  connection  with  them.  Nothing  in 
the  way  of  -  composition  could  well  be  more  dreary  than 
a  letter  which,  without  any  kindling  of  feeling  or  of  fancy, 
recounts  prosily  the  incidents  of  the  writer's  daily  life. 
Business  letters  should  be  as  brief  as  possible,  that  they 
may  not  take  too  much  of  the  time  of  the  recipient,  but 
they  should  not  be  so  brief  as  to  seem  curt  and  dis- 
courteous ;  the  writer  himself  should  have  plenty  of  time 
for  the  one  to  whom  he  writes. 

Practical  Importance  of  Letter-Writing. 

So  much  of  our  connection  with  our  fellows  we  now 
establish  or  maintain  through  correspondence,  that  no 
one  can  afford  to  neglect  cultivating  the  ability  to  write 
a  good  letter.  A  word  misspelled  or  used  in  a  wrong 
sense,  a  preposition  employed  needlessly,  or  a  sentence 
awkwardly  phrased,  may  be  enough  to  forfeit  for  the 
writer  the  regard  of  one  whose  favor  is  of  importance. 
A  statement  not  quite  clear,  or  one  which  makes  two 
interpretations  possible,  may  prevent  the  completion  of  a 
business  arrangement,  or  later  may  involve  the  parties 
to  it  in  a  lawsuit.  The  ability  to  present  one's  self  effec- 
tively on  paper  is  a  business  qualification  of  the  highest 
moment,  and  is  to  be  cultivated  not  less  for  practical 
than  for  social  and  personal  reasons. 

The  Parts  of  a  Letter. 

A  formal  letter  may  be  divided  for  convenience  into 
the  following  parts  :  The  Heading,  The  Address,  The 


370  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

Salutation,  The  Body,  The  Complimentary  Ending,  and 
The  Signature. 

The  Heading. 

The  Heading  of  a  letter  should  begin  well  to  the  right 
of  the  page,  and  an  inch  or  more  from  the  top.  It 
should  give  the  name  of  the  place  from  which  the  letter 
is  written,  followed  by  the  date  of  writing,  and  may  con- 
sist of  one  or  more  lines  according  to  the  inclination  of 
the  writer,  thus  :  — 


,  |C|00. 
Jde/2/.  1  2, 
1  34lo 


14,    |C|OI 

In  friendly  letters  and  social  notes  it  has  recently 
become  a  custom  to  put  the  place  and  the  date  at  the 
end  of  the  letter,  at  the  left  hand,  a  little  below  the 
writer's  signature,  and  to  write  out  the  date,  thus  :  — 

,  TU   l. 


APPENDIX  B.  3/1 

This  custom,  although  it  may  obtain  some  foothold  in 
polite  society,  is  not  to  be  recommended,  except  in  formal 
notes  of  invitation,  regret,  etc. 

The  Address. 

In  formal  or  business  letters  the  Address  should 
include  the  name  of  the  person  to  whom  the  letter  is 
written,  with  the  proper  title,  and  the  place  to  which 
the  letter  is  sent.  In  letters  to  relatives  or  friends 
the  address  is  not  used.  When  used,  it  should  be  put 
at  the  beginning  of  the  letter,  at  the  left  and  a  little 
below  the  heading,  or  at  the  close,  at  the  left  of  the 
signature,  and,  if  space  permits,  a  little  lower. 


a.  5, 


Carn/ru 


iy,  Qlvlo. 

The  Salutation. 

The  Salutation,  which  is  a  sort  of  courteous  introduc- 
tion to  the  body  of  the  letter,  should  be  written  on  the 
line  below  the  address,  and  a  little  to  the  left.  If  there 
is  no  address  at  the  beginning  of  the  letter,  the  Saluta- 
tion should  be  put  one  or  two  lines  below  the  heading, 
and  at  the  left-hand  margin.  The  writer  should  adopt 


372  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

such  a  form  as  is  in  keeping  with  the  relations  between 
him  and  the  person  addressed.  Dear  Friend,  Dear 
Cousin,  My  dear  Mother,  Dear  Sir,  Dear  Madam 
(married  or  single),  My  dear  Mr.  Brewer,  Gentlemen, 
may  be  used  according  to  the  degree  of  intimacy  existing  ; 
but  such  expressions  as  Kind  Friend,  often  employed  in 
attempting  to  create  a  relation  that  does  not  exist,  are 
to  be  avoided. 


.    10,   |C|00. 


.  8,    |C|OI. 
,  PexlJ!x>d/Uy,  ^  Co., 

3 


The  Body. 

The  Body  of  the  letter  contains  the  subject-matter  ; 
it  is  the  letter  itself.     In  familiar  letters,  where  we  give 


APPENDIX  B.  373 

information  or  recount  our  every-day  experiences,  the 
style  should  be  easy,  natural,  unaffected,  and  conversa- 
tional in  tone.  We  should  try  to  write  as  we  would 
talk  to  a  friend,  but  we  should  avoid  over-familiarity. 
Well-written  letters  afford  pleasant  reading,  and  the 
letters  of  such  writers  as  Lowell,  Emerson,  Carlyle, 
Lanier,  and  Stevenson  have  become  a  delightful  part  of 
our  literature.  By  due  care  in  writing  our  letters  we 
all  may  hope  to  make  them  a  source  of  pleasure  and 
delight  to  our  correspondents. 

Business  letters  should  be  more  formal.  They  should 
be  brief,  direct,  and  courteous.  They  should  state 
clearly  the  business  in  hand,  and  should  not  be  modeled 
after  a  telegraphic  message.  Important  words  should 
not  be  omitted,  and  unnecessary  abbreviations  should  be 
avoided.  It  is  best  to  write  on  only  one  side  of  the  page. 

The  Complimentary  Close. 

The  close  of  the  letter  is  determined  largely  by  the 
relations  that  exist  between  the  writer  and  his  corre- 
spondent. Yours  respectfully,  Your  obedient  servant, 
Yours  truly,  Very  truly  yours,  are  especially  fitting  when 
it  is  desired  to  be  formal  or  to  show  respect.  Sincerely 
yours,  Most  cordially  yours,  Your  loving  son,  etc.,  in- 
dicate more  intimate  and  friendly  relations. 

The  Signature. 

The  Signature  should  be  on  the  line  below  the  Com- 
plimentary Close,  and  at  the  right.  The  form  of  sig- 


374  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

nature  depends  somewhat  on  the  degree  of  familiarity 
between  the  correspondents.  In  general,  the  name  of 
the  writer  should  be  signed  in  full,  except,  perhaps, 
the  middle  name,  in  preference  to  writing  initials.  In 
writing  to  strangers  the  writer  should  sign  his  name 
in  such  a  way  that  the  recipient  will  know  how  to 
address  him  in  reply. 

Formal  Notes  of  Invitation  and  the  like. 

The  form  of  notes  of  invitation,  acceptance,  regret, 
etc.,  is  prescribed  by  arbitrary  rules.  They  should  be 
written  in  the  third  person  throughout,  and  the  phrasing 
should  follow  conventional  forms.  In  such  notes  the 
salutation,  the.  complimentary  close,  and  the  signature, 
are  omitted.  The  place  from  which  the  note  is  written 
and  the  date  of  writing  are  put  at  the  end  of  the  note, 
at  the  lower  left-hand  side  of  the  page.  All  dates  and 
the  hour  of  entertainment  should  be  written  in  full. 

The  Superscription. 

In  the  superscription  of  the  letter  great  care  should 
be  taken  to  include  all  directions  necessary  to  insure  its 
prompt  delivery  to  the  person  addressed.  The  first 
line,  consisting  of  the  name,  should  be  about  equally 
distant  from  the  upper  and  lower  edges  of  the  envelope, 
and  each  line  below  it  should  begin  a  little  farther  to 
the  right. 


APPENDIX  C.  '  375 


APPENDIX    C. 

EXAMPLES    OF    DEFECTIVE    COMPOSITION. 

THE  following  compositions  have  been  selected  from 
the  actual  work  of  a  class  of  boys  in  the  high-school 
grade.  They  have  been  chosen  at  random  from  some 
of  the  best  compositions  brought  to  the  class,  and  have 
been  copied  verbatim.  Some  of  them  are  crude,  others 
possess  more  or  less  merit,  and  all  are  defective  in  some 
respect ;  but  they  are  fair  examples  of  the  composition 
work  done  in  secondary  schools.  They  are  presented 
here  as  suitable  material  for  comment  and  discussion  in 
the  class-room,  and  may  be  studied  with  reference  to 
any  of  the  principles  in  the  preceding  chapters,  par- 
ticularly theme-development. 

Any  good  author,  like  Irving,  Ruskin,  Emerson, 
Arnold,  and  others,  will  furnish  abundant  models  of 
good  composition  ;  but  reference  may  be  made  especially 
to  the  many  good  selections  in  Mr.  E.  H.  Lewis' 
"Specimen  Forms  of  Discourse,"  published  by  Henry 
Holt  &  Co.,  New  York. 

SYMPATHY  WITH  ENGLAND. 

Lately  there  has  been  a  good  deal  of  gush  and  senti- 
ment exhibited  in  behalf  of  the  Boers,  by  certain  classes 


3/6    '  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

in  this  country.  Generous  feelings,  sympathy  with 
the  weaker  side,  attempts  to  minimize  the  claims  of  a 
powerful  nation,  all  these  have  their  use  and  worth. 
But  this  sentiment,  to  escape  being  ridiculous,  must 
be  founded  upon  logic,  and  buttressed  by  accurate 
information. 

It  is  easily  understood  that  the  sympathy  for  the 
Boers  in  their  struggle  against  the  English,  recently 
expressed  at  official  and  unofficial  meetings  in  this  city, 
is  controlled  much  more  largely  by  traditional  hatred 
of  England,  than  by  special  admiration  for  the  cause 
which  the  citizens  of  the  Transvaal  are  now  defending. 
The  country  which  the  advocators  and  supporters  of 
these  resolutions  have  in  mind  is  not  the  Transvaal,  but 
Ireland,  and  the  war  in  So.  Africa  is  used  simply  as 
a  club,  to  beat  those  who  are  looked  upon  as  old 
oppressors. 

The  question  arises,  "  Why  should  we  Americans 
sympathize  with  England  ?  "  We  should  sympathize 
with  her,  even  if  she  were  in  the  wrong :  But  she  is  not 
in  the  wrong :  she  is  in  the  right. 

Twenty  one  thousand  Outlanders,  all  subjects  of 
Great  Britian,  and  all  residents  of  the  Transvaal,  peti- 
tioned the  Queen  for  relief  from  their  grievances, 
among  which,  were,  "taxation  without  representation," 
"  not  to  be  forced  to  be  placed  under  the  control  of 
courts  whose  judges  take  their"  orders  from  a  corrupt 
executive."  The  Boers  do  not  allow  Outlanders  to  carry 
arms,  while  they  themselves  flourish  them  with  insolent 
brutality.  The  Outlanders  are  also  compelled  to  con- 
tribute to  schools  where  English  is  treated  as  a  foreign 
tongue.  In  short,  they  are  absolutely  denied  the  ele- 
mentary rights  of  self-government. 

A  disaster  to  England  would  be  the  greatest  world 


APPENDIX  C.  377 

calamity  that  could  be  conceived  of,  next  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  our  own  republic  ;  England  is  righting  as  against 
Russia  in  China  :  for  what  ?  For  English  advantages  ? 
No  :  For  the  advance  of  civilization,  for  open  ports,  for 
liberty.  If  worst  came  to  worst  and  there  was  a  war 
between  Russia  and  England  in  the  East,  for  the  two 
world  ideals  which  they  represent,  I  believe  America 
would  owe  its  highest  duty  to  God  and  to  man,  to  place 
every  ship,  every  gun,  every  dollar  she  possessed,  at 
the  back  of  and  beside  England.  Not  for  the  advantage 
of  England,  but  for  God,  and  for  man,  and  for  duty. 

I  will  say  nothing  as  to  our  debt  to  England  for  her 
silent  but  no  less  potent  friendship  of  a  year  ago. 

England  and  America  are  one  at  heart,  one  in  reli- 
gion, one  in  interests,  one  in  ideals,  one  in  hopes,  and 
must  be  one  in  either  defeat  or  triumph. 

A  PORCUPINE  HUNT. 

People,  who  have  not  had  the  good  fortune  to  spend 
a  few  weeks  or  months  in  a  region  which  abounds  in 
game  of  all  kinds,  can  hardly  imagine  what  a  pleasure 
it  is  to  take  gun  in  hand,  and  stroll  through  the  woods 
in  search  of  whatever  may  present  itself.  Not  only  is 
it  a  pleasure,  but  it  is  often  awe-inspiring,  especially 
when  one  is  in  search  of  such  an  animal  as  a  porcupine, 
whose  nocturnal  habits  oblige  the  hunter  to  seek  him 
after  the  woods  have  become  dark  and  still.  As  I  have 
been  fortunate  enough  to  be  able  to  spend  my  vacations 
in  a  section  of  Maine  bordering  on  the  Penobscot  river, 
many  a  hunt  of  the  above  nature  has  fallen  to  my  lot. 

In  preparation  for  the  hunt,  a  tour  of  inspection  is 
made  about  the  neighboring  orchards,  preferably  those 
situated  near  the  borders  of  the  wood,  as  the  porcupine 


3/8  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

is  very  fond  of  the  tender  summer's  growth  of  apple- 
trees,  especially  of  sweet  ones.  If  porcupines  once  visit 
an  orchard,  and  find  good  feed,  they  do  not  fail  to 
frequent  the  place  nightly ;  but  alas,  they  leave  traces 
behind  them,  for  under  a  tree  which  they  have  visited, 
the  ground  will  be  seen  to  be  strewn  with  the  young 
growth  of  the  tree,  cut  in  such  a  manner  as  to  defy  an 
inexperienced  person  to  determine  whether  the  cut  had 
been  made  by  a  porcupine,  or  with  the  jack-knife  of  a 
boy.  The  front  teeth  of  a  full-grown  porcupine  -are 
fully  three-eighths  of  an  inch  in  width,  and  one-half  an 
inch  long,  thus  enabling  him  to  cut  a  limb  of  considerable 
magnitude,  with  ease. 

A  keen  observer  will  notice  that  the  bark  over  which 
the  clumsy  creature  has  climbed,  is  a  little  bit  worn ; 
thus  after  all  signs  of  the  presence  of  a  porcupine  have 
been  duly  considered,  all  is  ready  for  the  hunt. 

Evening  comes,  and  shortly  afterwards  the  moon 
rises,  casting  a  mellow  and  indistinct  light  over  the 
woods  and  orchards.  Taking  his  gun,  the  hunter  leis- 
urely, but  carefully  takes  his  way  to  the  orchard  pre- 
viously visited.  It  is  unnecessary  to  wait,  for  the  game 
is  already  on  the  scene.  Stopping  a  moment  to  listen, 
he  hears  a  rustling  of  leaves  and  snapping  of  twigs  ;  not 
because  the  game  has  been  disturbed,  but  because  of  its 
naturally  clumsy  movements  and  of  its  entirely  uncon- 
cerned manner,  being  thoroughly  absorbed  in  its  work 
of  destruction. 

Contrary  to  most  hunts,  no  care  need  be  taken  now  to 
prevent  a  noise,  as  it  only  serves  the  more  to  keep  the  por- 
cupine in  the  tree.  The  hunter  must  not  be  dismayed  if 
at  the  shot,  the  porcupine  does  not  fall,  for  it  is  a  very 
tenacious  animal ;  but  if  the  aim  has  been  true,  the 
animal  sooner  or  Inter  will  fall,  producing  a  noise,  in 


APPENDIX  C.  379 

striking  the  ground,  similar  to  that  which  might  be 
made  by  letting  fall,  from  a  considerable  height,  a 
rubber  water-bottle,  three-quarters  full  of  water. 

It  now  remains  to  convey  the  animal  home,  but  if 
home  be  very  far  off,  this  task  is  none  of  the  pleasantest, 
as  the  weight  of  a  full-grown  porcupine  varies  from 
twenty  to  thirty  pounds.  The  largest  of  several  which 
I  have  secured  weighed  twenty-eight  pounds. 

The  pleasure  and  excitement  of  the  hunt,  together 
with  a  few  quills,  are  the  hunter's  only  compensation  ; 
but  in  after  years,  the  sight  of  the  quills  recalls  to  his 
mind  a  memorable  night's  hunt. 

THE  STEAM  CARRIAGE. 

A  thoughtful  person  reviewing  the  history  of  the 
past  few  years  must  notice  that  the  world  is  rapidly 
changing  from  the  use  of  one  form  of  energy  to  another, 
from  animal  to  mechanical  power.  In  view  of  this  fact 
it  cannot  be  reasonably  argued  that  the  automobile  is 
simply  a  passing  fad.  It  has  come  to  stay,  although  of 
course  the  powers  employed  may  be  radically  changed. 
But  at  present  steam  heads  the  list  for  the  average 
pleasure  carriage. 

The  steam  engine  is  an  old  friend  to  the  mechanic 
who  is  not  so  familiar  with  the  more  modern  gas  engine. 
Since  the  necessary  fuel,  water  and  gasoline,  is  pro- 
curable in  almost  any  district,  it  provides  ample  means 
for  touring.  Many  people  object  to  the  noise  and  ex- 
haust. But  if  one  stops  to  think,  why  is  this  any  more 
objectionable  than  the  pound  and  rattle  of  the  iron  shod 
horse  and  carriage. 

In  running  one  of  these  carriages  of  course  there  are 
certain  things  that  must  be  watched.  In  front  are  two 


380  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

gauges  usually,  one  registers  the  amount  of  pressure  on 
the  gasoline  which  forces  the  oil  to  the  fire  box,  the 
other  shows  the  steam  pressure,  which  varies  from  one 
hundred  twenty  to  one  hundred  sixty  while  running. 
These  do  not  need  constant  watchfulness,  but  a  person 
who  does  not  wish  to  be  left  on  the  road  will  always 
keep  an  observant  eye  on  the  fluctuating  levels  of  the 
water-gauge,  for  a  burnt  out  boiler  is  next  to  useless. 
A  by-pass  valve  near  the  throttle  lever  directs  the  water 
from  the  pump  to  the  boiler,  or  back  to  the  tank, 
according  as  it  is  closed  or  open. 

A  person  wishing  to  run  a  steam  carriage  does  not 
need  any  extended  instruction  in  mechanics.  If  a  high 
rate  of  speed  is  desired  put  on  more  steam,  if  not  so 
much  shut  it  off  and  apply  the  brake,  no  juggling  with 
different  clutches  and  gears.  I  have  called  this  carriage 
a  pleasure  one,  for  a  business  man,  or  more  especially  a 
physician,  who  must  be  out  in  all  weathers,  does  not 
appreciate  the  results,  when  a  strong  wind  blows  down 
the  ventilation  for  the  fire,  blowing  the  flame  out  around 
the  bottom  of  the  carriage  to  the  terror  and  consterna- 
tion of  the  passerby  if  not  extinguishing  the  flame 
entirely.  Since  steam  is  an  expansive  power,  an  easier 
motion  is  obtained,  than  the  jerky  movement  which  is 
apt  to  arise  from  an  explosive  engine. 

Hence,  for  a  pleasure  trip  what  could  be  more  de- 
lightful than  to  skim  smoothly  over  the  ground  at  almost 
any  speed  desired,  without  any  animal  immediately  in 
front  to  obstruct  the  view.  (Here  is  another  power  for 
good  roads  and  one  not  to  be  slighted,  for  usually  the 
mobile  possessor  is  a  person  of  influence  and  bound  to 
be  heard.)  Of  course  the  auto-carriage  is  still  in  its 
infancy,  and  one  is  liable,  while  soaring  on  the  heights 
of  abstract  enjoyment  to  be  forced  back  suddenly  to 


APPENDIX  C.  381 

earth  again,  to  practice  perhaps  the  virtue  of  patience, 
and  perhaps  return  to  a  more  ancient  form  of  locomo- 
tion, for  after  all  legs  were  made  before  anything  else. 

The  building  of  self-propelling  carriages  has  in  a 
measure  arisen  from  the  experience  in  cycles,  which  are 
a  cross  between  the  animal  and  mechanical  elements. 
Consequently  it  is  natural  that  the  earlier  productions 
should  be  largely  characterized  by  bicycle  methods, 
therefore  the  care  of  a  carriage  is  only  a  little  more 
work  over  that  of  a  bicycle,  this  includes  the  wheels 
and  engine-bearings,  etc.  Besides  this  there  is  the 
gasoline  which  produces  the  heat,  and  the  boiler.  To 
prevent  any  undue  incrustation  of  the  latter,  from  the 
impurities  of  the  water  it  is  necessary  to  blow  it  out 
every  third  day  or  so. 

Ordinary  steam  engines  which  are  likely  to  be  called 
on  at  short  notice,  must  keep  up  a  little  steam,  but  with 
the  engine  as  applied  to  the  carriage  I  have  in  mind,  a 
person  wishing  to  take  a  ride  is  not  detained  over  ten 
minutes  generating  steam  enough.  In  starting  there 
will  be  some  water  in  the  cylinder,  which  will  make  the 
steam  a  little  heavy,  after  this  has  worked  out,  he  may 
confidently  shake  good  bye  to  wheelmen,  horses  and 
"  brass  buttons  "  even. 

His  LAST   RUN. 

"  Wake  up  boys  we  must  be  starting."  This  was 
said  to  two  magnificent  fox-hounds  which  were  sleepily 
yawning  in  my  face.  All  the  previous  afternoon  had 
been  spent  in  getting  from  the  city  school  to  my  play- 
grounds way  down  in  the  woods  on  the  Cape,  and  now 
when  the  east  was  tinged  with  a  cold  yellow  and  pink, 
which  gave  the  cedars  a  metallic  touch,  and  the  breath 


382  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

steamed  out  on  the  mild  quiet  air,  I  had  arisen,  resolved 
on  getting  at  least  a  shot  at  the  most  famous  and 
cunning  fox  in  the  township.  The  townspeople  had 
asked  why  I  did  not  get  that  fox  until  I  felt  like  putting 
the  dogs  into  their  hands  for  a  day,  just  as  did  an  old 
farmer  I  know,  who,  when  advised  to  plow  in  a  different 
way,  asked  his  friend  to  show  him  how.  The  shrewd 
farmer  was  evidently  satisfied  for  he  directed  his  en- 
ergies to  another  part  of  the  farm,  leaving  his  friend 
to  finish  the  piece. 

We  passed  around  the  end  of  a  pond.  The  water 
not  yet  having  awakened  lay  calm,  while  in  the  distance 
were  two  beautiful  birds,  the  sheldrake  way  down  the 
shore  and  the  blue  heron  cautiously  wading  in  silence 
and  deliberation.  Suddenly  my  attention  was  called  in 
another  direction ;  the  harsh  doleful  bark  of  the  fox 
was  heard.  The  dogs  were  a  full  half  mile  back  care- 
fully sniffing  along  the  ground.  The  fox's  bark  told 
me  two  things,  a  den  nearby  and  in  it  young.  As 
I  knew  that  she  never  would  bring  the  dogs  back  to 
that  den,  I  made  for  a  certain  runway  a  mile  off.  As  I 
ran  there  was  rumpus  enough,  the  heavy  bay  of  the 
hounds  was  steadily  going  off  and  growing  fainter. 

Now  as  we  all  know,  the  fox,  like  the  rabbit,  is  very 
apt  to  make  a  large  circle,  but  it  is  necessary  to  stand 
on  a  place  which  is  a  fairly  sure  point  for  the  passing 
of  the  game.  I  went  to  a  pond  because  I  had  found 
the  print  of  her  foot  in  the  mud  there,  near  to  the  den, 
and  I  suspected  that  she  probably  was  living  in  this  den 
this  season,  thus  I  was  fairly  sure  of  getting  this  partic- 
ular fox  started  by  going  to  her  den.  You  ask  how 
I  knew  it  was  her  by  the  print  ?  That  is  easily  made 
plain  by  saying  that  in  a  fight  or  in  a  trap  she  had 
deformed  one  foot.  This  fox  generally  led  a  straight 


APPENDIX  C.  383 

away  chase,  when  started  from  the  pond  and  finally  re- 
turned almost  to  a  certain  opening  in  a  certain  runway, 
but  just  before  reaching  that  point,  the  dogs  barking 
like  mad,  all  would  suddenly  become  quiet.  The  dis- 
gusted dogs  at  last  returning  would  sniff  around  in  a 
dejected  manner.  So  now  when  I  reached  this  runway 
I  improved  my  time  of  waiting  for  the  distant  voices  of 
the  hounds  so  sweet  to  the  hunter's  ear,  by  looking 
about  to  see  why  this  fox  never  crossed  this  spot,  but 
always  disappeared  just  short  of  it.  I  was  cautiously 
following  the  runway  into  the  bushes  and  had  just  come 
within  easy  reach  of  a  wall  of  piled  up  stones,  when  I 
heard  my  dogs  faintly  in  the  north.  The  voices  came 
nearer  so  rapidly  that  I  took  my  warning  and  stood  like 
a  statue  behind  a  young  pine.  Occasionally  the  dogs 
would  give  a  yapping  angry  bark  as  they  lost  the  trail. 

Ushered  in  by  a  tremendous  baying  a  fair  sized,  dead- 
grass  colored  object  swung  lightly  but  rapidly  toward 
me.  Could  my  eyes  be  right !  calmly  she  walked  just 
out  of  gunshot  to  a  brook  followed  it  back  deliberately 
towards  the  dogs,  until  they  were  nearly  within  sight. 
Then  lightly  upon  my  side  of  the  brook  and  followed  it 
right  up  close  to  me,  intent  only  upon  the  dogs,  her 
cunning  intelligent  face  showing  that  she  was  full 
master  of  her  trick.  Right  up  and  past  me  she  went. 

My  old  gun  laid  back  his  ears  at  full  cock,  but  I  did 
not  feel  that  it  was  quite  time  to  shoot,  for  I  wanted  to 
prevent  the  fox  from  making  some  quick  dodge.  In 
the  meantime  I  looked  along  the  wall  to  try  to  see 
what  she  would  do  next.  Of  course  all  this  was  done 
in  a  flash.  I  saw  an  old  buttonwood  with  a  hole  in  the 
hollow  trunk.  The  tree  was  near  the  wall  and  within 
gunshot.  It  all  came  upon  me  now.  I  read  the  trick 
and  just  as  the  old  fox  made  a  leap  for  the  tree,  my  gun, 


384  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

which  I  no  longer  could  restrain,  roared  out  its  opinions 
on  the  subject.  The  fox  was  red  and  unusually  large, 
the  fur,  moreover,  was  still  in  good  condition. 

Country  people  are  not  demonstrative,  nor  do  they 
always  show  appreciation,  yet  when  they  heard  of  this 
notorious  hen  thief,  all  my  friends  came  over  to  see  him 
and  hear  the  story.  I  felt  proud  when  one  of  them 
said,  "Well  I  aint  seen  no  sich  critter  killed  round 
here  since  the  'old  man'  died."  The  "old  man"  was 
a  trapper. 

THE  BOOKS  WE  READ. 

In  these  times  when  thousands  of  new  books  are 
published  every  week,  a  few  words  of  advice  concerning 
the  choice  and  the  use  of  literature  are  necessary,  espe- 
cially to  children.  There  are  so  many  temptations 
offered  in  the  form  of  bad  literature,  hidden  under  ele- 
gant language,  that  unless  parents  pay  strict  attention 
to  their  children's  reading,  they  will  generally  be  led 
astray.  There  are  others  also  who  are  sorely  in  need  of 
counsel,  especially  the  young  men  and  women  who  read 
every  new  novel  issued,  and  who  keep  a  list  of  all  the 
trash  they  have  read,  to  show  it  to  their  friends  who 
generally  regard  it  as  a  sign  of  much  knowledge  and 
learning. 

Such  readers  have  no  purpose  in  life  ;  they  read 
solely  for  amusement.  It  is  true  that  we  read  some- 
what for  enjoyment,  but  most  of  our  reading  should  be 
for  a  purpose.  We  should  not  waste  our  time  in  read- 
ing corrupt,  morbid,  indecent  ,books  without  thought 
and  without  realizing  their  injurious  effect  upon  the 
mind.  On  the  contrary,  good  books  exert  a  beneficial 
influence  on  us,  which  remains  throughout  our  lives. 
Good  reading  strengthens  the  mind,  destroys  narrow- 


APPENDIX  C.  385 

ness,  elevates  the  soul,  gives  us  food  for  noble  reflec- 
tion, stimulates  us  to  action,  and  makes  us  fresh  and 
vigorous.  When  engaged  in  it,  we  are  lost  to  the  out- 
side world,  to  our  troubles,  and  to  our  sorrows.  We 
are  ever  cheerful  and  happy,  and  with  no  distressing 
cares.  More  than  friends,  says  Irving,  "books  cheer  us 
with  that  true  friendship  which  never  deceived  hope  nor 
deserted  sorrow." 

Even  when  we  have  acquired  a  taste  for  good  books, 
much  depends  on  our  manner  of  reading.  According  to 
Bacon,  some  books  are  to  be  read  only  partly,  others 
inattentively,  and  a  few  wholly  and  diligently.  There 
is  much  that  we  must  omit,  for  life  is  short.  We  must 
not  try  to  read  everything  recommended.  But  whatever 
we  do  read  should  be  read  attentively,  with  no  interrup- 
tions, and  not  blindly ;  that  is,  we  should  have  our  own 
thoughts  on  what  the  author  says,  be  independent  of 
his  views,  and  weigh  and  consider  his  statements.  We 
should  also  bring  to  our  work  the  proper  spirit.  A 
good  suggestion  is  to  take  notes  while  we  read. 

Relatively  to  our  most  important  topic  —  what  to 
read,  —  only  general  instructions  should  be  given.  A 
list  of  good  books  is  not  commendable.  Each  one  has 
his  likes  and  dislikes,  and  he  should  not  be  afraid  to 
express  them.  Listen  to  Shakespeare  :  — 

"  No  profit  goes  where  there  is  no  pleasure  ta'en : 
In  brief,  sir,  study  what  you  most  affect." 

A  book  that  we  dislike  becomes  a  bore  to  us.  Do  not 
read  Shakespeare,  Milton,  or  Dante,  if  they  give  you  no 
pleasure,  although  it  is  not  their  fault.  Some  day,  per- 
haps, you  will  appreciate  them. 

But  do  not  read  books  only  for  amusement.  A  first- 
class  novel  may  be  read  once  in  a  while,  but  simply  "  for 


386  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

a  change,"  a  relaxation  from  our  usual  reading.  Read 
books  that  will  aid  you  in  life,  that  will  further  you  in 
your  objects  and  aims  ;  books  that  contain  information 
regarding  your  special  study  or  calling ;  books  that 
have  elevating  ideas  and  noble  thoughts ;  books  that  cul- 
tivate good  expression  and  develop  reflection.  "  Histories 
make  men  wise/'  says  Bacon,  "  poets  witty ;  the  mathe- 
matics subtle  ;  natural  philosophy  deep  ;  moral  grave  ; 
logic  and  rhetoric,  able  to  contend."  And  "so,"  he 
concludes,  "every  defect  of  the  mind  may  have  a  special 
receipt."  Furthermore,  let  me  say  that  a  good  book 
is  worth  reading  again  and  again,  and  should  give  re- 
newed pleasure  on  each  occasion. 

Should  the  reader  feel  dissatisfied  with  the  vagueness 
of  these  suggestions,  there  are  many  lists  at  his  dis- 
posal, covering  general  literature,  and  special  studies. 
A  strict  adherence,  however,  to  the  above  rules  will  no 
doubt  accomplish  much  toward  a  higher  regard  for  true 
literature.  And  should  that  be  acquired,  the  reader  can 
easily  aid  in  the  noble  work  now  going  on  for  the  raising 
of  the  standard  of  pure  books  and  good  reading. 


APPENDIX  D. 


387 


APPENDIX    D. 


TOPICS     TO     BE     NARROWED    TO    THEME    SUBJECTS. 


School-days. 
Manual  Training. 
The   Troubadour  of 

Middle  Ages. 
Heroes. 
The  Twilight  Hour. 


the 


6.  The  Almighty  Dollar. 

7.  Delusions. 

8.  Sympathy. 

9.  The  Aurora  Borealis. 

10.  Stained  Glass. 

11.  Ceramics. 

12.  Gems. 

13.  Voices  of  the  Night. 

14.  Foliage. 

15.  Industry. 

16.  The  Beacon  Light. 

17.  The    Underground    Rail- 

way. 

18.  Courtesy. 

19.  Gipsies. 

20.  The  Transvaal. 


21.  Drifting. 

22.  The  Dawn. 

23.  Castles  in  Spain. 

24.  The  Buccaneers. 

25.  Porto  Rico. 

26.  The  Klondike. 

27.  Exile. 

28.  Labor  Unions. 

29.  Lynching. 

30.  Niagara. 

31.  The  Postman. 

32.  The  Shipwreck. 

33.  History. 

34.  Popular  Art. 

35.  Realism. 

36.  Reading. 

37.  Our  Foreign  Possessions. 

38.  The  Library. 

39.  Reminiscences. 

40.  The  New  Century. 

41.  Recent  Inventions. 


TOPIC  SENTENCES  TO  BE    DEVELOPED    INTO    PARAGRAPHS. 


-  i.    Education  is  the  unfolding  of  the  powers  of  the  mind. 

2.  The  fifteenth   century  was  one  of  stirring  achievement  in 

discovery,  invention,  and  letters. 

3.  The  young  man  who  chews  gum  in  public  places  should  not 

expect  to  be  received  as  a  gentleman. 

4.  For  some  people,  "Hitch  your  wagon  to  a  star,"  —  may 

prove  an  unfortunate  precept. 


388  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

5.  We  can  best  avoid  gossip  by  trying  to  think  well  of  our 

neighbors. 
<^6.  The  United  States  needs  a  larger  standing  army. 

7.  We  should  avoid  the  bargaining  spirit  in  making  presents. 

8.  Examinations  are  a  necessary  evil. 

9.  Unpunctuality  is  one  sort  of  rudeness. 

10.  The  necessity  for  labor  is  an  inestimable  blessing. 

11.  Many  new  employments  are  opening  for  women. 

12.  The  forests  of  this  country  form  one  of  its  most  important 

resources. 

13.  Truth  requires  help  for  its  spread  ;  falsehood,  none. 

14.  Opportunity  comes  but  once. 

15.  The  student  who  will  not  give  attention  in  the  class-room 

cannot  hope  to  learn. 

16.  The  study  of  Latin  may  be  made  an  excellent  training  in 

accuracy  of  expression. 

17.  It  is  difficult  for  a  boy  who  cannot  spell  well  to  obtain  a 

position  through  correspondence. 

18.  The  theory  of  evolution  has  affected  all  scientific  thought. 

19.  "  Half  the  world  does  not  know  how  the  other  half  lives." 

20.  "  Rome  was  not  built  in  a  day.7' 

21.  A  love  of  Nature  has  a  refining  influence  on  the  character. 

22.  I  was  frightened  when  I  saw  him  coming  up  the  walk. 

23.  It  was  one  of  the  most  attractive  spots  I  ever  saw. 

24.  The  best  education  is  sometimes  that  which  a  man  gives 

himself. 

25.  I  shall  never  forget  my  pleasure  in  reaching  the  "Bill  and 

Cross-bow  Inn  "  that  night. 

26.  The  hotel   clerk  was  a  very  important  fellow,  who  main- 

tained a  pompous  reserve  behind  his  diamonds. 

27.  The  study  of  mathematics  is  a  training  in  logical  acuteness. 

28.  There  are  many  qualities  required  in  the  woman  who  as- 

sumes to  be  a  lady. 

29.  Our  treatment  of  the  Indian  has  been  unjust. 

30.  I  shall  always  remember  the  night  of  the  fire. 

31.  There  is  usually  so  much  lawlessness  in  connection  with  a 

strike  that  people  do  not  sympathize  with  the  strikers. 

32.  Willie  had  a  number  of  accidents  on  the  Fourth  of  July. 

33.  The  village  had  changed  very  much  since  I  last  saw  it. 

34.  We  are  all  influenced  more  or  less  by  our  environment. 

35.  Abraham  Lincoln  probably  stands  higher  in  popular  regard 

than  any  other  American. 

36.  Nature  never  copies. 

37.  History  repeats  itself  in  many  ways. 


APPENDIX  D.  389 

TOPIC    SENTENCES    AND    THE    WHOLE    COMPOSITION. 

Assuming  that  each  of  the  topic  sentences  given 
above  is  for  a  paragraph  which  is  to  be  part  of  a  larger 
whole,  write  three  other  topic  sentences  for  as  many 
paragraphs  which  shall  complete  the  composition,  and 
supply  a  title  for  what  you  assume  the  completed  writ- 
ing is  to  be.  Arrange  the  topic  sentences  in  the  proper 
order,  and  be  prepared  to  say  which  topic  sentences 
should  be  developed  into  the  longer  paragraphs. 


SUBJECTS  FOR  WHICH  FIVE  TOPIC  SENTENCES  EACH  FOR 
AS  MANY  PARAGRAPHS  ARE  TO  BE  WRITTEN  AND 
ARRANGED  IN  ORDER. 

1.  The  French  and  Indian  War. 

2.  Municipal  Government. 

3.  Making  a  Photograph.     • 

4.  The  Return  of  the  Foot-Ball  Team. 

5.  A  Roman  Triumph. 

6.  Franklin  in  Philadelphia. 

7.  Long  John  in  Treasure  Island. 

8.  Jim  Hawkins's  Part  in  Treasure  Island. 

9.  The  Story  of  Sohrab  and  Rustum. 

10.  The  Character  of  Basil  the  Blacksmith  in  Evangeline. 

11.  Life  in  Acadia  in  Evangeline. 

12.  The  Character  of   Oubacha   in   The  Flight  of  a    Tartar 

Tribe. 

13.  The  Story  of  Rip  Van  Winkle  in  The  Sketch  Book. 

14.  The  Greek  Gods  as  found  in  the  Iliad. 

15.  Roderick  Dhu  in  The  Lady  of  the  Lake. 

16.  The  Course  of  the  Fiery  Cross  in  The  Lady  of  the  Lake. 

17.  Shylock  and  Antonio  in  The  Merchant  of  Venice. 

1 8.  Character  of  Gama  in  The  Princess. 

19.  The  Man  in  the  Iron  Mask. 

20.  The  Humor  of  Lincoln. 

21.  The  Legend  of  the  Holy  Grail. 

22.  Where  and  How  to  advertise. 


390  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 


23.  Color-printing  in  Modern  Magazines. 

24.  Spanish  Influence  in  South  America. 

25.  A  Local  Industry. 

26.  A  Fast  Mail  Train. 

27.  An  Old-fashioned  Garden. 


SUBJECTS    FOR    WHICH    MATERIAL    IS    TO    BE    GATHERED 
AND    ARRANGED. 

1.  Causes  of  the  Revolution. 

2.  The  French  Peasantry  in  the  Eighteenth  Century. 

3.  Charlemagne's   Influence  on   the    Development  of   Civili- 

zation. 

4.  The  Growth  of  Manufacturing  Industries  in  the  South. 

5.  The  Nicaragua  Canal. 

6.  Results  of  the  Peace  Conference  at  the  Hague. 

7.  Schools  for  the  Indian. 

8.  A  Roman  House. 

9.  The  Trans-Siberian  Railroad. 

10.  The  Friendship  between  Johnson  and  Goldsmith. 

11.  Pope  and  Addison. 

12.  The  Roentgen  Rays. 

13.  The  Yellowstone  National  Park. 

14.  The  Coal-fields  of  the  United  States. 

15.  Wealth  and  Progress. 

16.  The  Department  Stores. 

17.  The  Conspiracy  of  Aaron  Burr. 
__Ji8^The  Origin  of  Thanksgiving. 

19.  The  New  England  Town  Meeting. 

20.  The  Elizabethan  Age  in  Literature. 

21.  Milton  as  a  Controversialist. 

22.  Bacon's  Contribution  to  Scientific  Thought. 

23.  The  Natural  Advantages  of  the  United  States. 

24.  Social  Customs  of  the  Last  Century. 

25.  The  Sinking  of  the  Alabama. 

26.  The  Holiday  Season. 

27.  The  Falls  of  Niagara. 

28.  A  Spanish  Bull-fight. 

29.  Farragut  at  New  Orleans. 

30.  The  Suez  Canal. 

31.  Advantages  of  Recreation. 

32.  The  Grievances  of  the  American  Colonies. 

33.  Summer  Sports  in  the  Country. 

34.  Dangers  of  Trades  Unions. 

35.  Changes  of  Fashion. 


APPENDIX  D.  391 

36.  The  Advantages  of  Travel. 

37.  The  Effects  of  Machinery  on  Manual  Labor. 

38.  Improvements  in  Agriculture. 

39.  The  World's  Supply  of  Coal. 

40.  War  and  Arbitration. 


PARAGRAPHS  OF  DETACHED  STATEMENTS  TO  BE  COM- 
BINED INTO  SENTENCES  WITH  PROPER  SUBORDINA- 
TION OF  CLAUSES. 

f  I-^V  f£W  weeks  ago  the  Amherst  College  freshmen  and 
sophomores  had  a  "rush."  One  of  their  number  was 
seriously  injured.*  It  was  feared  that  he  might  not  live. 
The  next  morning  the  students  voted  that  the  custom 
should  cease.  They  voted  that  something  less  dangerous 
should  take  its  place.  President  Harris  had  given  them 
one  of  his  quiet,  unimpassioned  talks.  One  young  man 
at  the  bottom  of  a  cane  rush  last  week  was  suffocated 
to  death.  This  was  at  the  Institute  of  Technology  in 
Boston.  This  was  a  very  sad  event.  It  affected  the 
whole  body  of  students,  and  the  new  president,  Dr.  Prit- 
chett.  We  do  not  condemn  contests  between  colleges  or 
classes.  They  should  not  endanger  life.  If  they  do 
they  should  be  abolished.  Superiority  may  be  decided  in 
many  other  ways.  It  is  not  necessary  to  set  two  or  three 
hundred  men  to  pounding  and  fighting  and  tumbling  on 
each  other. 

2.  There  are  many  various  departments  of  painting.  Of  these 
many  do  not  presume  to  make  such  high  pretensions. 
None  of  them  are  without  merit.  There  is  a  great  uni- 
<C  versal  pervading  idea  of  the  art.  With  this  none  of  them 
come  into  competition.  There  are  painters  who  have 
applied  themselves  more  particularly  to  low  and  vulgar 
characters.  They  express  with  precision  the  various 
shades  of  passion  as  they  are  exhibited  by  vulgar  minds. 
This  we  see  in  the  works  of  Hogarth.  They  deserve 
great  praise.  Their  genius  has  been  employed  on  low 
and  coafined  subjects.  The  praise  that  we  give  must 
then  be  as  limited  as  its  object.  The  merry-making  or 
quarreling  of  the  boors  of  Teniers  is  excellent  in  its 
kind.  So  also  is  the  same  sort  of  productions  of  Brouwer 
or  Ostade.  The  excellence  and  its  praise  will  be  in  pro- 
portion, as,  in  those  limited  subjects  and  peculiar  forms, 
they  introduce  more  or  less  of  those  passions  as  they 


392  COMPOSITION  AND   RHETORIC. 

appear  in  general  and  more  enlarged  natures.  This  prin- 
ciple may  be  applied  to  the  battle-pieces  of  Bourgognone. 
It  is  true  of  the  French  gallantries  of  Watteau.  It  even 
goes  beyond  the  exhibition  of  animal  life.  It  is  applic- 
able to  the  landscapes  of  Claude  Lorraine,  and  the  sea- 
views  of  Vandewelde.  All  these  painters  have,  in  general, 
the  same  right,  in  different  degrees,  to  the  name  of  a 
painter.  It  is  the  right  which  a  satirist,  an  epigrammatist, 
a  sonnetteer,  a  writer  of  pastorals  or  descriptive  poetry, 
has  to  that  of  a  poet. 

3.  The  oldest  steam  engine  in  the  world  belongs  to  the  Bir- 
mingham Canal  Navigation  Company.  It  was  constructed 
by  Bolton  and  Watt.  It  was  constructed  in  the  year  1777. 
The  order  was  entered  in  the  firm's  books  in  that  year.  It 
was  a  single-acting  beam  engine.  It  had  chains  at  the 
end  of  a  wood  beam.  It  had  a  steam  cylinder  of  thirty- 
two  inches  diameter.  The  stroke  was  eight  feet.  It  was 
erected  at  the  canal  company's  pumping-station  at  Rolfe 
Street,  Southwick.  This  remarkable  old  engine  has  been 
regularly  at  work  from  the  time  of  its  erection  to  the  cur- 
rent year.  That  is  a  period  of  120  years.  During  the 
present  year  it  was  removed  to  the  canal  company's  station 
at  Ocker  Hill,  Tipton.  There  it  was  to  be  reerected.  It  is 
preserved  as  a  relic  of  what  can  be  done  by  good  manage- 
ment when  dealing  with  machinery  of  undoubted  quality. 
The  Birmingham  Canal  Company  favored  Bolton  and 
Watt  in  1777.  They  gave  them  the  order  for  this  engine. 
This  is  worthy  of  note.  They  have  intrusted  the  same 
firm,  James  Watt  and  Co.,  Soho,  Southwick,  with  the 
manufacture  of  two  new  engines.  They  are  to  be  erected 
at  the  Walsall  pumping-station.  They  are  to  have  240 
horse-power.  Their  pumping  capacity  will  12, 7 13, 600  gal- 
lons per  day. 


PARAGRAPHS  CONTAINING  WORDS  IN  ITALICS  FOR  WHICH 
OTHERS  ARE  TO  BE  SUBSTITUTED,  WITH  REASON  FOR 
THE  CHANGE. 

The  three  vessels  had  been  swinging  swiftly  westward,  the 
cog  still  well  to  the  fore,  although  the  galleys  were  slowly 
gathering  in  upon  either  quarter.  To  the  left  was  a  severe  sky- 
line, unbroken  by  a  sail.  The  island  already  latd\\kz  a  cloud 
behind  them,  while  directly  in  front  was  St.  Albans  Head,  with 
Portland  looming  indistinctly  in  the  distance.  Alleyne  stood 


APPENDIX  D.  393 

by  the  tiller,  gazing  backward,  the  fresh  wind  straight  in  his 
teeth,  the  crisp  winter  air  tingling  on  his  countenance  and 
blowing  \\\s  golden  curls  from  under  his  bassinet.  His  cheeks 
were  flushed  and  his  eyes  sparkling,  for  the  blood  of  a  hundred 
quarreling  Saxon  ancestors  was  beginning  to  move  in  his 
veins, 

A.  CONAN  DOYLE  :  The  White  Company. 

The  unterrified  youth  took  the  bitter  sentence  with  resigna- 
tion that  excited  every  heari  but  Manfred's.  He  wished  zeal- 
ously to  know  the  import  of  the  words  he  had  heard  referring 
to  the  Princes ;  but  dreading  to  inflame  the  tyrant  more 
towards  her  he  ceased.  The  only  favor  he  stooped  \&  ask  was, 
that  he  might  be  allowed  to  have  a  confessor,  and  make  his 
reconciliation  with  heaven.  Manfred,  who  hoped  by  the  con- 
fessor's means  to  arrive  at  the  youth's  history,  readily  allowed 
his  request;  and  being  assured \h?A.  Father  Jerome  was  now  in 
his  cause,  he  ordered  him  to  be  called  and  shrive  the  prisoner. 
The  sacred  man  who  had  little  foretold  the  calamity  that  his 
imprudence  produced,  fell  on  his  knees  to  the  Prince  and  con- 
jured\\\m  in  the  most  serious  way,  not  to  ^\^  guiltless  blood. 
He  accused  himself  in  the  bitterest  words  for  his  indiscretion, 
attempted  to  disculpate  the  youth,  and  left  no  way  untried  to 
ameliorate  the  tyrant's  rage.  Manfred,  more  enraged  than 
appeased  by  Jerome's  intervention,  whose  retraction  now  made 
him  surmise  he  had  been  imposed  upon  by  both,  commanded 
the  Friar  to  do  his  duty,  telling  him  that  he  would  not  permit 
the  prisoner  many  minutes  for  confession. 

HORACE  WALPOLE  :  The  Castle  of  Otranto. 

These  myths  or  current  tales,  the  natural and  first  growth 
of  the  Grecian  mind,  composed  at  the  same  time  the  entire 
mental  stock  of  the  time  to  which  they  belonged.  They  are 
the  common  origin  of  all  those  different  branches  into  which 
the  mental  activity  of  the  Greeks  subsequently  separated  ;  con- 
taining, as  it  were,  the  preface  and  germ  of  the  positive  history 
and  philosophy,  the  dogmatic  theology,  and  pretended  romance, 
which  we  shall  hereafter  trace,  each  in  its  individual  develop- 
ment. They  gave  food  to  the  curiosity,  and  satisfaction  to  the 
uncertain  doubts  and  aspirations  of  the  age ;  they  explained 
the  origin  of  those  manners  and  standing  strangenesses  with 
which  men  were  familiar;  they  impressed  moral  lessons, 
awakened  national  sympathies,  and  exposed  in  detail,  the 
shadowy,  but  anxious  foreseeing  of  the  vulgar  as  to  the  inter- 
ference of  the  gods;  moreover,  they  fulfilled  that  craving  for 
adventure  and  appetite  for  the  wonderful  which,  has  in  modern 
ages  become  the  province  of  fiction  proper. 


394  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

It  is  hard,  we  may  say  impossible,  for  a  man  of  mature 
years  to  ^r/V/^back  his  mind  to  his  thoughts  such  as  they  stood 
when  he  was  a  child,  growing  instinctively  out  of  his  imagina- 
tion and  emotions,  working  upon  a  meagre  stock  of  matter,  and 
loaning  from  authorities  whom  he  blindly  followed  but  incom- 
pletely knew.  A  like  difficulty  occurs  when  we  endeavor  to 
place  ourselves  in  the  historical  and  quasi-philosophical  posi- 
tion of  sight  which  the  old  myths  show  to  us.  We  can  follow 
exactly  the  imagination  and  feeling  which  dictated  these  narra- 
tives, and  we  can  admire  and  sympathize  with  them  as  active, 
sublime,  and  moving  poetry ;  but  we  are  too  much  used  to 
matter  of  fact  and  philosophy  of  a  certain  sort  to  be  able  to 
apprehend  a  time  when  these  beautiful  fantasies  were  under- 
stood'literally  and  taken  as  sober  reality. 

GEORGE  GROTE  :  History  of  Greece. 

Though  he  was  like  his  father  in  none  of  that  father's  greater 
characteristics,  he  was  like  him  in  being  worthy  of  no  confi- 
dence. When  he  sent  that  letter  to  the  Parliament,  from 
Breda,  he  did  positively  promise  that  all  earnest  religious 
opinions  should  be  respected.  Yet  he  was  no  sooner  strong  in 
his  power  than  he  agreed  to  one  of  the  worst  acts  Parliament 
ever  passed.  Under  this  statute,  every  minister  who  should 
not  yield  his  solemn  consent  to  the  prayer-book  by  a  certain 
day  was  announced  to  be  a  minister  no  longer,  and  to  be 
robbed  Qi  his  church.  The  result  of  this  was,  that  some  two 
thousand  honest  men  were  taken  from  their  audiences,  and 
reduced  to  dire  poorness  and  distress.  It  was  succeeded  by 
another  outrageous  law,  called  the  Conventicle  Act,  by  which 
any  person  above  the  age  of  sixteen  who  was  present  at  any 
pious  service  not  according  to  the  prayer-book,  was  to  be  im- 
prisoned three  months  for  the  first  violation,  six  for  the 
second,  and  to  be  transported  for  the  third.  This  act  alone 
filled  the  prisons,  which  were  then  most  awful  dungeons,  to 
overflowing. 

CHAS.  DICKENS:  Child's  History  of  England. 


EXPOSITORY     THEMES     TO     BE     OUTLINED     WITH     REFER- 
ENCE   TO    ARRANGEMENT    AND    PROPORTION. 

i.   Alchemy  and  Chemistry. 
2:  The  Pedigree  of  Words. 

3.  At  what  Point  in  Education  should  Specialization  Begin. 

4.  The  Heal  School. 

5.  College  Athletics. 


APPENDIX  D.  395 

6.  The  Effect  of  the  Drama  on  Society. 

7.  Wireless  Telegraphy. 

8.  The  Kindergarten  Principle. 

9.  Why  We  Should  Study  Mythology. 

10.  Sir  Thomas  More's  Educational  Theories, 

n.  The  Mound  Builders. 

12.  The  Druids. 

13.  The  Cotton  Gin. 

14.  How  the  Water  Runs  the  Mill. 

15.  A  Paternal  Government. 

16.  The  Australian  Ballot  System. 

17.  The  Spanish  Armada. 

18.  Vulcanizing  Rubber. 

19.  The  City  Street  Railroad  System. 

20.  The  Constitution  of  the  English  Parliament. 

ARGUMENTATIVE   SUBJECTS   TO    BE    OUTLINED    IN   PROPER 

ORDER. 

1.  Should    "Pupil    Government"     be    introduced    into    our 

schools? 

2.  Should  churches   and  colleges  accept  gifts  from  million- 

aires who  have  made  their  money  by  means  generally 
accounted  dishonest? 

3.  Should  the  presidential  term  be  extended  ? 

4.  Should  representatives  vote   according   to  their  own  con- 

victions or   according  to   the  desire  of   their   constitu- 
ents ? 

5.  Should  the  Government  own  and  control  the  railways? 

6.  Does  life  offer  greater  opportunities  than  a  century  ago  or 

not? 

7.  .Should  senators  be  elected  by  direct  vote  of  the  people? 

8.  Are  large  department  stores  an  injury  to  the  country? 

9.  Should  the  United  States  own  and  control  the  Nicaragua 

Canal? 

10.  Is  the  average  daily  paper  an  injury  to  the  reader  or  not? 

11.  Are  "sumptuary  laws  ever  necessary? 

12.  Is  immigration  detrimental  to  the  United  States? 

13.  Should  the  United  States  cultivate  especially  friendly  rela- 

tions with  England? 

14.  Should  a  man  be  qualified  to  vote  if  he  cannot  read  ? 

15.  Should  eight  hours  constitute  a  day's  labor? 

16.  Should  fish  be  caught  with  a  seine? 

17.  Should  high  schools  be  maintained  at  the  public  expense? 

18.  Is  an  exclusively  vegetable  diet  healthful? 

19.  Should  education  be  made  compulsory? 


396  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

20.  Do  trades-unions  tend  to  promote  the  best  interests  of  our 

workingmen  ? 

21.  Should   the   standing   army  in  the   United    States   be   in- 

creased ? 

22.  Had  England  a  right  to  interfere  in  the  affairs  of  South 

Africa? 

23.  Should  office-holders  be  assessed   for   the   expenses  of  a 

party  campaign  ? 

24.  Should  the  United  States  annex  any  foreign  possessions? 


EXERCISES  GATHERED  FROM  SCHOOL  COMPOSITIONS, 
NEWSPAPERS,  AND  OTHER  SOURCES,  CONTAINING  VA- 
RIOUS DEFECTS,  TO  BE  CORRECTED  BY  PUPILS.  THE 
REASONS  FOR  CORRECTIONS  ARE  TO  BE  GIVEN  IN 
ALL  CASES. 

1.  We  did  not  want  none  of  the  goods  and  told  him  so  at  once. 

2.  Rip  was  lazy,  which  was  a  great  part  of  his  character,  but 

being  so  obliging  his  neighbors  all  took  his  part 

3.  A  prominent  portion  of  it  (Windsor  Castle)  is  the  old,  gray 

stone  tower  more  elevated  than  the  rest,  and  in  which 
James  I.  was  confined. 

4.  Nothing  need  be  said  about  the  mill,  as  they  can  be  seen 

most  anywhere. 

5.  Fortunately  we  have  got  a  hundred  years  to  recover  from 

the  jamboree  in. 

6.  The  church  was  situated  on  a  rise  of  ground,  and  around  it 

was  a  graveyard  and  its  walls  were  covered  with  ivy. 

7.  They  were   exactly   like   the  Irishman's   pig,  he   couldn't 

count,  because  it  wouldn't  stand  still  long  enough -for 
Pat  to  count  it. 

8.  What  a  nice  thing  it  would  be  for  this  mundane  sphere  if 

it  had  started  in  young  and  fresh,  the  glamour  of  sophis- 
tication extinguished  in  the  clear  light  of  regeneration  ! 

9.  Athletics  is  run  into  the  ground  in  many  schools. 

10.  The  old  red  school-house  was  situated  on  the  hill,  where 
the  children  of  the  village  whose  fathers  could  afford  it, 
attended. 

u.  Through  it  flowed  a  broad  river  whose  silvery  waters 
meandered  slowly  on  its  course  towards  the  sea. 

12.  Trouble  was  anticipated  at  the  Republican  caucus,  but 
everything  passed  off  smooth.  Hardly  had  the  pro- 
ceedings commenced  than  two  voters  were  challenged, 


APPENDIX  D.  397 

but  each  proved  their  right  to  vote  and  harmony 
prevailed. 

13.  According  to  a  private  correspondent  London  has  been 

outfogged  for  once  and  everybody  has  given  themselves 
up  to  gloom. 

14.  In  the  distance  we  notice  green  woodlands  whose  depths  is 

the  retreat  of  deer  and  other  animals. 

15.  The  School  Committee  forgets  that  they  were  once  young 

and  liked  to  go  to  parties. 

16.  What  do  you  think  about  this  cloth  wearing  well. 

17.  We  salute  the   new  commonwealth    of  Australia,   which 

comes  into  existence  today,  where  its  first  Parliament 
will  be  opened  by  the  Duke  of  York  who  has  arrived 
there  from  London  for  that  purpose. 

18.  When  Gans  met  Erne  here,  he  proved  himself  to  be  a  rank 

quitter,  and  the  whole  thing  was  a  fake. 

19.  Caesar  then  tried  to  send  a  message  to  the  Senators  by 

Decius,  but  he  declined  to  do  so. 

20.  The  physician  who  was  called  to  attend  the  girl  who  was 

murdered  with  chloral  and  by  the  degenerate  men  will 
testify  before  the  coroner  tomorrow. 

21.  When  a  chinchilla  fur  borders  the  jacket  in  narrow  bands 

the  fronts  are  frogged  with  silver  galloon,  and  the  skirt 
has  a  broad  band  of  fur  above  a  plaited  cloth  flounce 
the  result  is  very  dainty. 

22.  The  first  thing  generally  happens  when  the  gang  arrives  on 

the  train.  One  of  the  push,  dressed  as  a  rube  skips  the 
car  before  it  stops,  and  lands  in  a  heap  on  the  platform. 

23.  The  strike's  beginning  was  caused  by  the  fact  that  six 

month's  wages  was  due  the  workmen. 

24.  Rip  had  as  many  more  qualities  that  were  bad  as  he  had 

as  few  qualities  that  were  good. 

25.  The  West  Point  testimony  has  gone  far  enough  to  show 

that  the  cadets  think  bracing  is  great  larks. 

26.  The  latest  narrative  relative  to  another  big  financial  coup 

by  the  big  bulls  of  Wall  Street  is  authoritatively  denied. 

27.  I  was  confronted  by  a  diminutive  maiden  whose  habili- 

ments were  indicative  of  penury. 

28.  During  the  ancient  rdgime  the  peasants  were  grieviously 

oppressed. 

29.  He  became  identified  with  the  anti-slavery  party  and  into 

which  he  threw  his  whole  soul. 

30.  The  amende  honorable  having  been  made,  a  hostile  meet- 

ing was  prevented.    ' 

31.  The  mischievous  urchins  caught  the  poor  dog,  and  to  his 

caudal  appendage  they  affixed  a  hollow  vessel  that  rever- 


398  COMPOSITION  AND  RHETORIC. 

berated  most  discordantly  as  the  yelping  quadruped  ran 
down  the  street. 

32.  Upon  which  the  Moor,  seizing  a  bolster,  full  of  rage  and 

jealousy,  smothered  the  unhappy  Desdemona. 

33.  On  this  occasion  the  question  gave  rise  to  much  agitation, 

and  soon  q,fter  absorbed  every  other  consideration. 

34.  Jonas,  my  son,  you  are  entering  upon  your  life ;  before  you 

the  doors  of  the  future  open  wide,  and  like  a  young 
squirrel  escaping  from  his  cage,  you  go  forth  to  navigate 
the  sea  of  life  upon  your  own  wings. 

35.  He  lost  his  wife,  his  child,  his  household  goods,  and  his 

dog,  at  one  fell  swoop. 

36.  Edith  always  says  "  lots  of  folks  "  when  she  means  "  quanti- 

ties of  persons." 

37.  So  utterly  was  Carthage  destroyed  that  we  are  unable  to 

point  out  the  place  where  it  stood  at  the  present  day. 

38.  While  the  storm  was  raging,  a  tree  was  struck  by  a  flash 

of  lightning,  which  was  the  only  flash  seen  during  the 
storm,  and  which  looked  like  a  ball  of  fire. 

39.  She  is  a  novice ;  that  is  to  say,  a  green  hand  at  making 

bread. 


INDEX. 


Abbreviations,  151. 
ability,  163. 
accept,  159. 
acceptance,  157. 
acceptation,  157. 
access,  157. 
accession,  157. 
accordingly,  309. 
accredit,  \  59. 
0c/,  161. 
#^,  151. 

Adjectives  and  Adverbs,  184. 
admire,  165. 
admission,  161. 
admit,  166. 
admittance,  167. 
<z#Z**,  159. 

affaires  d*  amour,  149. 
fl/fer,  163. 
afterwards,  163. 
aggravating,  167. 
Alexandrine,  356. 
Allegory,  340. 
Allen,  Grant,  285. 
Alliteration,  254,  255. 
allude,  165. 
allusion,  157. 
almost,  1 60,  184. 
0/w.y,  182. 
alumni,  182. 
American  Terms,  139. 
among,  169. 
analysis,  182. 
Anapaest,  351. 
Anglicisms,  139. 

Anglo-Saxon  Element,  The,  107. 
Comparison  of  Two  Elements, 
114. 


angrily,  185. 
angry,  168,  185. 
Antithesis,  288,  342. 
anybody,  183. 
#;rj/  0«<f,  183. 
Apostrophe,  343. 
apparently,  167. 
«//,  167. 
Archaisms,  348. 
Argumentation,  211,  330-332. 

Exercises  in,  215. 
arise,  162.. 

Arrangement,  Coherent,  306. 
Art  and  Science,   distinction    be- 
tween, 6. 
assert,  166. 
Assonance,  254,  255. 
at,  169. 

Austin,  Jane,  235. 
avocation,  161. 

'bad,  185. 
badly,  185. 
Bain,  Prof.,  296. 
balance,  163. 
Balance,  260,  290. 
Balanced  Sentences,  282. 

Uses  of,  287-289. 
Ballad,  The,  348. 
banter,  150. 
Barbarisms,  147. 
Barrie,  J.  M.,  49. 
Bates,  Arlo,  13. 
Beauty,  239. 

Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  61,  312. 
between,  169. 
bicycle,  150,  151. 
bicycling,  151. 


399 


400 


INDEX. 


bicyclist,  151. 

bioscope,  150. 

Birrel,  Aug.,  238. 

blase,  149. 

bombast,  149. 

both,  1 68. 

bring,  166. 

Browning,  Robert,  336. 

buncombe,  149. 

btirglarize,  151. 

Burke,  Edmund,  233,261. 

Burroughs,  John,  98. 

Bushnell,  Horace,  68. 

by,  169. 

cab,  151. 

calculate,  165. 

<ra;z,  167. 

canoe,  148. 

capacity,  163. 

Capitals,  366 ;  Use  of,  in  Titles,  17. 

cargo,  148. 

Carlyle,  Thomas,  131,  263,  346. 

carriage,  165. 

carry,  166. 

Case,  Errors  in,  1 79. 

Castle,  Egerton,  148. 

Channing,  Wm.  E.,  276. 

character,  164. 

Chidwick,  John  P.,  77. 

Choate,  Rufus,  74. 

cigar,  148. 

Circumlocution,  222,  223,  234. 

claim,  1 66. 

Classical  Element,  The,  109. 

Clearness,    231 ;   in  the   sentence, 

268-269. 

Climax,  259,  263,  313. 
Coherence,  4,  231,  252;   Rhythm 

and,   252 ;    in    the    Sentence, 

267  ;   in  the  Paragraph,  303  ; 

in  the  whole  Composition,  325. 
Colon,  363. 
Collective  nouns,  182. 
combine,  151. 
Comedy,  349,  350. 
Comma,  360. 
common,  168. 


322 
Prii 


Comparison  of  the  Two  Ele- 
ments, 114. 

complement,  158. 

completeness,  161. 

completion,  161. 

compliment,  158. 

Composition  defined,  4  ;  Requisites 
for,  3 ;  System  in,  4 ;  the 
Whole,  316-326;  Relation  to 
its  Parts,  316;  Plan  of,  316- 
320 ;  Introduction  to,  320— 
|22  ;  Conclusion  of,  322—323  ; 
'rinciples  of  Style  Applied  to, 
323,324;  Unity  in,  324,  325; 
Coherence  in,  325,  326;  Em- 
phasis and  Proportion  111,326. 

Concordances,  128. 

confess,  166. 

Connectives,  Uses  of,  309-311; 
Omission  of,  311-312. 

Connectives  and  Correlatives,  189. 

consequently,  309. 

construct,  1 59. 

construe,  159. 

continual,  163. 

continuotis,  163. 

contrary,  on  the,  309. 

convince,  159. 

convict,  159. 

Cornford,  L.  Cope,  126. 

Correct  Expression,  133. 

Corwin,  Thomas,  73. 

Cosmopolitan,  The,  208. 

council,  158. 

counsel,  158. 

Couplet,  350. 

credible,  160. 

credit,  159. 

creditable,  160. 

credulous,  160. 

Crawford,  F.  Marion,  51. 

Criticism,  329,  333,  334. 

Curtin,  Jeremiah,  201. 

Curtis,  Geo.  Wm.,  78. 

custom,  164. 

Dactyl,  351. 
data,  182. 


INDEX. 


401 


Davis,  Richard  Harding,  14. 

deadly,  163. 

deathly  i  163. 

decided,  160. 

decisive,  160. 

Defective  compositions,  375. 

delusion,  157. 

depressing,  338. 

DeQuincey,  Thos.,  252,  293,  300. 

Description,  201,  301-333. 

Descriptive  Writing,  Exercises  in, 
201. 

Dial,  The,  119. 

Dickens,  Chas.,  31,  105,  242,  243. 

Diction,  22 1 ;  Force  as  a  Quality  of, 
234-236 ;  Elegance  as  a  Qual- 
ity of,  238-240;  Poetic,  346. 

Dimeter,  353. 

Discourse,  The  Forms  of,  199,  329 ; 
What  Distinguishes  them,  1 99. 

discover,  166. 

doc,  151. 

Drama,  The,  349-350 ;  Dramatic 
Poetry,  349. 

each,  168,  183. 

eclat,  149. 

effect,  159. 

either,  183. 

electrocute,  150. 

Elegance,  232,  238-240;  as  ef- 
fected by  Rhythm  and  Tone- 
Color,  256. 

elegant,  168. 

E]egy,  349- 

Eliot,  George,  20,  66,  72,  252,  265, 
310. 

Elisions,  348. 

Emerson,  Ralph  Waldo,   73,   128, 

.  273; 

emigration,  161. 

Emphasis,  326 ;  General  Law  of, 
257,  258  :  How  Secured,  258- 
261  ;  Selection,  a  form  of,  262; 
Force  and,  262,  263  :  'in  the 
Paragraph,  311,  312;  in  the 
Comp.,  326. 

Energy,  234. 


en  grande  toilette,  149. 
enormity,  1 58. 
enormousness,  158. 
enthuse,  151. 
Epic,  The,  349. 
Errors,  in  Number,  182. 

Miscellaneous,  191. 
esteem,  159. 
estimate,  159. 
ethics,  182. 
Euphony,  254. 
Everett,  Edward,  254,  295. 
every,  167,  183. 
everybody,  183. 
evidently,  167. 
except,  159,  190. 
exceptional,  160. 
exceptionable,  1 60. 
Exclamation,  341. 
Exclamation  mark,  364. 
expose,  151. 
Exposition,  207,  329-331. 

Exercises  in,  209. 

Fable,  340. 
fad,  150. 

Faerie  Queene,  341. 
fake,  150. 
falseness,  162. 
falsity,  162. 

Farce,  The,  349,  350. 
female,  164. 

Fernald,  Chester  Bailey,  145. 
fetch,  1 66. 

Figurative  Language,  338. 

Figures,  340-344;  Use  of,  338- 
340 ;  Effect  of,  344. 

Fine  Writing,  242,  243. 

Foot,  The,  349,350. 

Force,  232 ;  as  a  Quality  of  Dic- 
tion, 234,  236 ;  and  Emphasis, 
262. 

Foreign  Words,  148. 

Forum,  The,  286. 

Frederic,  Harold,  66. 

Grammar  and  Rhetoric,  distinc- 
tion between,  7. 


4O2 


INDEX. 


Good  Usage,  9, 134,  135  ;  Applica- 
tion of  laws  of,  147. 
gents,  151. 
George,  Henry,  63. 
Gilman,  Daniel  Coit,  70. 
good,  184. 

Gray,  Thomas,  341,  349. 
Greeley,  Horace,  80. 
Gunton,  George,  286. 

habit)  164. 

hack,  151. 

Hammerton,  P.  G.,  51,  53,  62. 

haply,  163. 

happen,  167. 

happily,  163. 

Harland,  Marion,  75. 

Harmony,  255. 

Harrison,  Benjamin,  322. 

Hawthorne,  Nathaniel,  31,305. 

Hay  and  Nicolay,  272. 

headquarters,  182. 

healtkfzil)  163. 

healthy,  163. 

heavy,  338. 

Heptameter,  355. 

Hexameter,  354. 

Higginson,  T.  W.,  74,  310. 

hire)  167. 

Historical  Present,  The,  342. 

Holmes,  Oliver  Wendell,  271. 

however,  309. 

human,  160. 

humane,  160. 

humbug,  150. 

Hyperbole,  343. 

Hyphen,  271. 

Iambus,  351. 
Idiomatic  English,  171. 
Idioms,  171. 
if,  184. 
illusion,  157. 
immigration,  161. 
Improprieties,  What  they  are,  155  ; 
causes   of,    1 56 ;    classes    of, 

i57' 

in,  169. 


indeed,  309. 

incog,  151. 

Independent,  The,  63,  70,  75,  106, 

212,294. 

Indexes,  Uses  of,  33. 
Information,  Getting,  17. 
intend,  165. 

Interrogation  Mark,  364. 
Introduction,  The,  320-322. 
invent,  166. 
invite,  151. 
Ireland,  Alleyne,  106. 
Irony,  343. 
irritating,  167. 
Irving,  Washington,  31,  36,  64,65, 

67,  76,  80,  235,  256,  304. 
Italics,  365. 

James,  Henry,  10. 

Job,  288. 

Johnson,  Samuel,  256,  282. 

Jordan,  David  Starr,  212. 

Kilmer,  George  L.,  270. 

kind  of,  187. 

Kipling,  Rudyard,  187,  228,  236. 

Lamb,  Charles,  50,  312. 
lay,  162. 
learn,  166. 
lease,  167. 

Letter-writing,    368 ;     Importance 
of,  369 ;    Parts    of    a    letter, 

369- 

Lewis,  C.  B.,  295. 
liable,  167. 
lie,  162. 

License,  Poetic,  348. 
like,  165,  1 66,  184. 
likely,  167. 

Lines  of  Poetry,  Length  of,  353. 
Literature  of  Full  Statement,  330, 

331  ;  of  Suggestion,  331-333  ; 

Sources  of    Pleasure  in,  334- 

336. 

Local  Terms,  137. 
Lodge,  Thomas,  144. 
love,  1 66. 


INDEX. 


403 


Love-song,  348. 
Lyric,  The,  348-349. 

Mabie,  Hamilton,  289. 

macaroni,  148. 

Macaulay,  Thomaa  B.,  32,  52,  71, 

233>  253>  259>  265>  3°°- 
Maclaren,  Ian,  276. 
mad,  1 68. 
majority,  164. 

Manuscript,  Appearance  of,  15. 
Mass  in  the  Paragraph,  311. 
Material,  Sources  of,  16;  for  the 

Theme,  30. 
mathematics,  182. 
may,  167. 

McCarthy,  Justin,  94,  116. 
means,  182. 
measles,  182. 
Melodrama,  The,  350. 
mention,  165. 
Meredith,  George,  120. 
Merriman,  Henry  Seton,  127. 
Metaphor,  340. 
Meter,    351,    352  ;    Various   kinds 

of'  353'  355- 
metier,  149. 
Metonymy,  341. 
Milton,  John,  341,  348. 
mob,  150. 
moccasin,  148. 
Monometer,  353. 
Montgomery,  James,  352. 
Morris,  William,  143. 
most,  150,  184. 
motorman,  150. 
motornecr,  150. 
movement,  205. 
Murray,  W.  H.  H.,  81. 
mutual,  168. 

Narration,  204,  331. 
Exercises  in,  206. 
neither,  183. 

New  Formations  (words),  151. 
New  Words,  150. 
news,  182. 
Nicolay  and  Hay,  273. 


nobody,  183. 
none,  183. 

Norton,  Charles  Eliot,  77,  297. 
not  only,  190. 
Nouns  and  Pronouns,  179. 
Number,  Errors  in,  182 
Number  of  words,  222. 

observance,  158. 

observation,  158. 

Octometer,  356. 

Ode,  349. 

official,  1 60. 

officious,  1 60. 

Omission  of   Connecting    Words, 

310. 

Onomatopoeia,  254,  255. 
Opera,  350. 
oral,  1 68. 
ought,  185. 

pains,  182. 

pants,  151. 

Paragraph,  The,  42.  Importance 
of,  44.  Length  of,  46.  Topic- 
Sentence  for,  49.  Develop- 
ment of,  60.  Development 
by  Repetition,  61,  by  Detail, 
64,  by  Specific  Example,  68, 
by  Comparison  and  Contrast, 
71,  by  Cause  and  Effect,  74, 
by  Proofs,  76.  Irregular  De- 
velopment, 77.  Nature  of,  296. 
Principles  of  Structure,  297, 
Unity  of,  300.  Violations  of 
Unity,  300.  Variety  in,  302. 
Coherence  in,  303.  Selection 
in,  304-306.  Coherent  Ar- 
rangement of,  306-308.  Mass 
in,  311.  Emphasis  in,  311-312. 
Proportion  in,  312-313. 

Parallelism,  287,  288,  300. 

pard,  151. 

Parenthetical  expressions,  365. 

Parkman,  Francis,  72. 

partially,  160. 

partly,  160. 

party,  164. 


404 


INDEX. 


pedal,  131. 

Pentameter,  353. 
penult,  151. 

Period,  364. 
persecute,  150. 
person,  164. 

Personification,  341. 
phenomena,  182. 
//$/z,  151. 
phone,  151. 
photo,  151. 
piano,  148. 

PILGRIM'S  PROGRESS,  341. 

Pleasure,  Sources    of,   in    Litera- 
ture, 334. 
plurality,  164. 
practicable,  163. 
practical,  163. 

Precision,  227. 
prescribe,  159. 

Poetry,  Definition  of,  347-348. 
Poetic  Diction,  346.  Kinds 
of  Poetry,  348-350.  Terms 
applied  to,  350.  Poetic  Li- 
cense, 348. 
politics,  182. 

Possessive,  Case,  The,  170. 

Pronouns,  Errors  in  the  Use  of, 
181,  182. 

Propriety,  239. 

Proportion,  312,  326. 
propose,  159. 
proscribe,  159. 
prosectde,  160. 

Prosody,  347-357- 
proxy,  151. 

Punctuation,  358. 
purpose,  159. 

Quatrain,  350. 

Question,  Rhetorical,  343. 

quite,  1 68. 

Quotation  marks,  366. 

radii,  182. 
raise,  162. 
ranch,  148. 
rather,  168. 


real,  184. 

really,  184. 

receipt,  158. 

recipe,  158. 

Redundancy,  222,  224,  234. 

Redundant  and  Incomplete  Kx- 
pressions,  187. 

relation,  162. 

relative,  162. 

remainder,  163. 

reputation,  164. 

requirement,  162. 

reqtiisite,  162. 

r*rf,  163. 

Rhetoric  defined,  6.  Function  of, 
5.  Principles  of,  and  their 
authority,  8.  Rhetorical  Ques- 
tion, 343. 

Rhyme,  254. 

Rhythm,  249-252.  Clearness  and 
Force  as  Affected  by,  252, 
253;  and  Coherence,  252  ;  Ele- 
gance as  Affected  by,  256. 

ride,  166. 

rise,  162. 

rough,  338. 

Rules  of  Punctuation,  359. 

Ruskin,  John,  123,  252,  347. 

Sanborn,  Alvan  F.,  210. 

Scansion,  350. 

scoop,  150,  151. 

Scott,  D.  C.,  346. 

Scott,  Walter,  144. 

Scribner's  Magazine,  291,  346. 

Selection,  304. 

Semicolon,  362. 

sensible  of,  161. 

sensitive  to,  161. 

Sentence,  The  Unit  of  Discourse, 
85.  What  it  15,85.  what  it: 
may  Contain,  87.  Compound 
and  Complex,  88.  Subordina- 
tion in  Complex,  90.  Sen- 
tence Variety,  93.  Length  of, 
97.  Unity  and  Coherence  in, 
268,  269.  Rhetorical  Use  of 
Long  and  Short,  269-273. 


INDEX. 


405 


Clearness  in,  269.     Kinds  of, 

281.      Loose,    281,    282,   284, 

286.      Periodic,  281,  282,  283. 

284,  287.     Balanced,  282,  383. 

Uses   of   Balanced,  287,  288. 

Normal  English  Sentence,  283. 
series,  165. 
set,  162. 
shall,  169,  1 86. 
Sharp,  Wm.,  250. 
Shelley,  Percy  B.,  347. 
shoeist,  151. 
should,  170. 

Sienkiewicz,  Henry,  201. 
significance,  158. 
signification,  158. 
simile,  340. 
sit,  162. 
slang,  149. 
sloop,  148. 
snob,  150. 
Solecisms,  178.     In  Use  of  Nouns 

and  Pronouns,  179. 
Sonnet,  The,  349,  356. 
Spalding,  J.  L.,  230. 
Speech,  The  Habit  of  Correct,  1 1  ; 

The  Parts  of,  184. 
Spenser,  Edmund,  356. 
splendid,  168. 

Spofford,  Harriet  Prescott,  240. 
Spondee,  The,  351. 
sprint,  151. 
stampede,  148. 
St.  Paul,  322. 
Stanza,  A,  350. 
statement,  158. 
statue,  158. 
statute,  158. 
stay,  167. 

Stedman,  E.  C.,  344. 
Stephens,  Alexander  H.,  80. 
Stevenson,  R.  L.,  203,  332. 
stop,  167. 
Strength,  234. 
Structure,  Unity  of,  298. 
Style,  221.     As  Affected  by  Choice 

of   Words,   231.     Rhythm  as 

an  Element   of,  249-252,  As 


Affected  by  Sentence-Form, 
290. 

Subject,  The,  17;  Getting  Infor- 
mation upon,  1 8  ;  Interest  in, 
18;  Definite  Subjects,  19; 
Narrowing  the  Subject,  20 ; 
Sources  of,  22. 

succession,  165. 

such,  309. 

suicide,  151. 

suspect,  184. 

suspicion,  184. 

Swinburne,  A.  C.,  255. 

Syllables,    Accented     and    Long, 

352,  353- 
Synecdoche,  341. 
Synonyms,  Books  of,  128,  227. 

tableaux,  182. 

tactics,  182. 

Taste,  230. 

Tautology,  222,  224,  234. 

Taylor,  Isaac,  98. 

teach,  1 66. 

team,  165. 

Technical  Terms,  138. 

telephone,  150,  151. 

telephonic,  151. 

Tennyson,  Alfred,  240,  348,  353, 

355- 

testimony,  165. 

Tetrameter,  353. 

Thackeray,  W.  M.,  325. 

that  and  which,  183. 

Theme,  The  Preparatory,  15.  Ma- 
terial for,  30.  Organizing  of,  33. 
Development  of,  35.  Body 
of,  38.  Beginning  of,  35-36. 
Ending  of,  37.  An  Organic 
Whole,  38. 

therefore,  309. 

this,  that,  these,  those,  309, 

Thompson,  Maurice,  294. 

Thomson,  James,  240. 

Title,  Selection  of,  21-22. 
Use  of  Capitals  in,  \6. 

tomahawk,  148. 

Tone.  Unity  of,  298. 


406 


INDEX, 


Topic-Sentence,  The,  49. 
Tory,  149. 
lour,  151. 
Tragedy,  349,  350. 
transpire,  167. 
Trimeter,  353. 
Triplet,  The,  350. 
Trochee,  351. 
trouserings,  151. 
typewriter,   150. 

Unidiomatic  English,  172. 

union,  158. 

Unity,  158,  231.  In  the  Sentence, 
267.  In  the  Paragraph,  299- 
303.  In  the  Whole  Composi- 
tion, 304. 

United  States,  The,  182. 

Use,  National,  136.  Present,  135. 
Reputable,  140. 

van,  151. 

verbal,  168. 

Verbosity,  222,  224. 

Verbs  and  Verbals,  Errors  in  the 
U&e  of,  185. 

verdict,  165. 

Verse,  350.  Prevailing  English, 
356-357.  Special  Forms  of, 
356.  Blank  Verse,  350. 


•very,  168,  184. 
Vocabulary,  A  Large,   121. 

to  Increase,  122. 
•vocation,  161. 


How 


walkist,  151. 

Ward,  Herbert  D.,  120. 

Ward,  Julius  H.,  284. 

Webster,  Daniel,  329. 

•well,  184. 

which  and  that,  183. 
Whig,  149. 

who  and  whom,  182. 

wigwam,  148. 

will,  169,  and  shall,  186. 

with,  169. 

without,  190. 

woman,  164. 

Wordiness,  222,  227. 

Words,  Sources  of  English,  103. 
Emotional  and  Intellectual 
Characteristics  of,  1 16.  Num- 
ber of,  222.  Choice  of,  225. 

Wordsworth,  Wm.,  228. 

would,  1 70. 

Writing,  Effective,  5.  Writing 
and  Talking,  9. 

yacht,  148. 
Yankee,  149. 


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